Only You
by rkcaskett
Summary: A criminal from their past returns and Castle's been kidnapped.  It's up to Beckett and the team to locate him.  Will they reach him in time and will this crime solving duo admit how they feel to each other.
1. Chapter 1

Rick Castle was speeding along I-495 heading west; back into Manhattan. He had been up most of the night, trying to finish up the next Nikki Heat novel; the one he promised Gina he would finish before the month was over. He had reached a very important plot point in the novel for Heat; Rook or Schlemming?

Gina had lasted about 3 days with him in the Hamptons. When he thought about it later, it was really a bad decision, definitely, one of his top tens in life. Hell, it was worthy of a top five. He had replayed that last day at the precinct. Kate pulling him out of the break room, talking about how she had a really great time with him this year. How she knows she doesn't let on how she's really feeling, how she's just going to put it out there and then she tells him "have a really great summer." He agreed that there working together had been great, shook her hand and walked out with Gina; that was the bad decision.

Too hurt himself to notice, he never saw the look on Kate's face as he walked out with Gina. Alexis' was off at her summer program at Princeton, Martha was doing summer stock and Kate, well, Kate was with Demming. So, finally deciding he needed to stop avoiding Gina and finish the book, he willingly ran off to the Hamptons with her. Again, bad decision. He had spent most of the last few weeks brooding about it. At about 4 am this morning, after replaying that last day over and over in his head, he decided he needed to find out. Did he have a small chance, and God he really wanted a chance, or had she already moved on with Demming?

Not that Demming was a bad guy. Another handsome, square jawed and by the book kind of guy; another Sorenson. A NYPD male Beckett. He gave a small chuckle and thought back to what he had to told Kate almost 2 years ago about Sorenson.

"_Ying needs Yang. Not another Ying. Ying Yang is harmony, Ying Ying is the name of a panda."_

Demming was certainly another Ying.

At the sound of a horn, he saw the light had changed. He gunned the BMW down Second Ave and turned right when he hit Thirteenth Street. Raced down the last few blocks and hit the button in the car for the gate. He pulled in his spot, put the car in park and turned it off.

He smiled as he sat in the car, because, he had a plan. A very simple plan. He was going to show up at the precinct, sit her down in one of the rooms and lay all his cards out on the table. He had decided on the drive in, he had to play this straight with her. He wasn't going to use the usual tactics with her, it wouldn't work. She wouldn't take him seriously, and he needed her to take him _very _seriously.

He got out of the car, grabbed the laptop bag and headed to the elevator. He would call Alexis, let her now he was here and hopefully get to have lunch with her. A quick call to Martha, a check of his emails, a shower and he would be out the door. A stop on the way to the 12th to pick up their morning coffee, a bear claw for Kate and a long overdue conversation.

He hit the door to his loft, keys in hand. He paused, before inserting the key in the lock. He was suddenly nervous. He hoped he could make her understand, make her see that _they_ could have something special together. He saw that now, it had taken him a few weeks, and he needed, desperately needed, to make her see it. With a glance at his watch, a turn of his key and he was through the door. Not bothering to light his way, he went to his study, pulled the laptop out of it's case, plugging it in and powering it up as he reached for his cell.

Alexis picked up the phone on the second ring, "Hello...?", sounding half asleep.

"Hey pumpkin," he smiled as he looked at the time. "I hope I didn't wake you. Please tell me you were out all night with friends."

She laughed at him, "Hey Dad. I was up most of the night studying for a test today. But I did go to a party the other night, if that will make you happy. How's the weather out there this morning?" she asks as she rolls over in bed, wide awake now.

"I'm in Manhattan. Just got in a few minutes ago," he answers as he starts going through new email; Gina, great. "I called to see if you are available for either a late lunch or early dinner later."

"I have a test and two classes today but I can do a late dinner, say around 7. Unless, you are going to head out to the Hamptons sooner. Are you here because you have a meeting today for the new Nikki Heat book?"

"You could say I have a meeting, but it's not about the book, but it is about Nikki Heat. Just a situation I should have to fixed with Nikki Heat before I left for the Hamptons. I came back to fix it," he answers her. I pray to God it's not to late to fix it, he adds silently.

"Okay Dad," she responds. Not sure what he's talking about and a little too tired to get into it right now. "I hope it works out for you. I'll meet you in the parking lot of Hamilton Hall around 7. Good luck at your meeting. Love you."

"Go back to sleep. I'll see you then and love you too." He hangs up and smiles, she's a great kid. He's not sure how he got so lucky, but grateful that he seemed to have done something right.

He gets up and walks around his desk, undoing the buttons of his shirt as he turns the laptop around to face him. Might as well run off a quick email to Gina. He lets her now that 'Yes, he's been working on the book. It should be done in about 2 weeks and that he'll call when it is. And oh, by the way, I'm in town. Just for a day or two. A very important meeting with a friend. But, he's on top of the book and he'll keep her posted.'

He hit the send button. That should keep her happy, well semi-happy for a day or two.

Next was Martha. He then checked the time again. Nope, he decided, she would just be walking in and he can call her later today. He sent her a quick text to let her now he was in Manhattan and that he would call later. Okay, a shower and then he would be on his way to see Kate; God how he missed her. As he turned around, pulling his shirt from under the waistband of his jeans, he hears a voice.

"So nice of you to return home, Mr. Castle."

Kate got off the elevator, coffee in hand and checked her watch; it was early. Oh, who was she kidding, it was early everyday she walked in and late every night she left. She was only sleeping about 4 hours a night and then she was up, showered, dressed, and back here again. The days off where the worst, so she was working as much as Montgomery would let her. She looked over at his office and noticed his door was closed. Unusual, but she shrugged it off as she set the coffee and files down on her desk. As she sat down, reading over a few messages on her desk, her eyes moved to the empty chair beside it. She hated the days when there wasn't a fresh homicide to work. It meant being here, in the bullpen, at her desk, looking at the empty chair. _His chair. _She found herself wishing for the days, that seemed not that long ago, when he was here, watching her do paperwork.

"_You are watching me do paperwork; it's creepy.. Don't you have somewhere else to be?"_

"_I like it here", he would respond innocently._

She smiles at the memory. It was their usual banter, their game that they played so well together, the dance that they danced. She didn't always find it creepy, but she wasn't going to tell him that.

The smile slowly fades as she looks at the date on the calendar. The week after the 4th of July, eight weeks before he would be back. September wasn't arriving soon enough for her. She had thought about calling him a few times, had actually picked up her cell, hovered over his speed dial button and then hit the end button. How do you say, 'Hey I wanted to let you know I broke up with Demming before you left, I have feelings for you and I want you to come back' without sounding desperate.

Lanie had showed up at her new apartment that night, a pizza box and a bottle of tequila in hand. She poured out her heart to Lanie, cried over Castle, cried over her stupidity, thinking that _they _ could work. In the end, it was Lanie that made her understand that Castle was just as hurt as she was feeling now. Of course, that night she didn't want to see it, but she saw it now. God, she missed him, desperately missed him.

She only saw Demming once, he came down a few days later, heading to the espresso machine. She followed him in, advised him the machine was _not _for his use anymore. He left the cup that was filling and walked out. Esposito and Ryan watched her as she walked back out, and wisely neither of them said anything. A few weeks later, Esposito let it slip that Demming had gone back to the 54th precinct.

She didn't hear the door to Montgomery's office open. So, she jumped, when she heard his voice, "Beckett." She looked up, surprised to see him in so early. "Can you come in my office?" She got up quickly and moved towards his office. As she stepped into the doorway, she stopped. Montgomery wasn't alone. Esposito and Ryan were both seated on his couch. It was seeing Lanie, seated in one of the other chairs that caught her attention.

She felt a chill run across her entire body, finding a home at the back of her neck. She looks to the boys, but neither of them can look her in the eye. She turns to Lanie, and a lump forms in Kate's throat; this can't be good. She turns to Montgomery, "Have a seat Beckett, please." She shakes her head, mouthing the word 'NO' and crosses her arms over her chest. Montgomery looks at her, "Ryan, shut the door." The young detective gets up and shuts the door.

As Montgomery and Beckett continue to stare each other down, the other three in the room look at one another. All of them trying to make sense of what the captain had just told them. Finally, Montgomery sighs, "Please Kate. Please sit." At the sound of his voice and with another look in Lanie's direction, she slowly lowers herself into the other chair. Clearing her throat she whispers, "What's happened?"

Montgomery clears his throat, "The Mayor called me this morning. He received a call from the 8th precinct and when they advised him on the nature of the case, he advised them he would be handing it off to us. The FBI has been called in and we will meet them there. It's a kidnapping."

As a chill runs through her body, she crosses her arms again. Her eyes meet Montgomery's and she whisper's, "Who is it?" She feels all eyes on her as Montgomery answers quietly, "It's Castle."


	2. Chapter 2

She doesn't realize she's been holding her breath, until she finally pushes it out, between her lips. Lanie reaches over to take her hand, squeezes and releases it. Montgomery watches her, waiting for her next question, but she's silent. Ryan and Esposito, glancing at each other, are waiting too. No one is quite sure what to say to each other and especially to her.

Kate is too stunned to say anything. She barely feels the squeeze from Lanie's hand. She finally looks up at the captain, a faint sheen in her eyes, "How?"

Montgomery takes a deep breath, "At the loft. Whomever took him, didn't shut the door all the way. The alarm system he had installed, went off, they alerted the 8th precinct. When they got there, the evidence showed there had been a struggle. Knowing that it was Castle, they called the Mayor, he called me. I've already sent our CSU team down there, going thru his study and the rest of the loft. It appears, from what they have reported so far, the struggle was concentrated in his study."

She can tell he's holding back, leaving something out. "And?", sitting back in the chair, waiting for him to continue.

He takes another breath, looks over at Lanie and turns his gaze back to Kate, "They found blood."

He watches her, as she slowly closes her eyes, "How much?"

"Not a lot," he answers slowly, "They also located a knife."

Without opening her eyes, she nods. She takes a deep breath and opens her eyes, "We need to head down there and start processing the scene ourselves."

"That's why I called Ryan and Esposito in early. I called Lanie, because even though she's our ME, I wanted her to head up the processing team. Plus," he hesitates, "I wanted to make sure that you had your team there with you." They all are waiting for it, the denial, but she says nothing; just nods her head. The captain looks at the others, "Why don't you three head down to Castle's, we'll meet you down there shortly."

As they walk out, Lanie brushes her hand across Kate's shoulder, causing Kate to look up at her. "I'll see you there," Lanie whispers. Kate nods her head and watches her friends walk out the door, Ryan closing it.

Kate gets up slowly, walking over to the window, resting her head against the pane, looking out the window, at nothing.

"We'll find him Kate. It's only been an hour, CSU is processing the loft and the FBI has been called in."

When he mentions the FBI, she turns back around, arms still crossed, "Who did they send?"

He looks away from her as he answers, "Sorenson,"

She blows out her breath, dropping her arms, "Great. As if my day wasn't already at rock bottom." Montgomery opens his mouth to answer, but Kate puts up her hand, "Yes, I know. He's one of the best in his field. I would just prefer not to have to deal with Castle's disappearance and Will's ego all in one day."

Montgomery grins at her as he answers, "I have a feeling you'll have no problem putting Sorenson in his place. Especially when it comes to Castle"

She nods and starts to make her way to the door, suddenly stopping, she turns to him and whispers, "Alexis. Martha."

He stands up and walks around the desk to face her. "The Mayor's already contacted Martha. She's en-route, via the Mayor's helicopter, to collect Alexis."

He checks his watch, "They should already be landing at Pier 6. The Mayor's car will bring them to the loft. I suggested it would be easier to have the FBI question them both at the loft." She nods slowly.

_Alexis and Martha ….. _

She takes a deep breath, looks at the captain, "I need to be there when they arrive; it's what Castle would want me to do. He would want me to look after them."

The captain nods, "I know that. We will bring him home Kate."

She looks down at her shoes, "You don't know that," she whispers.

The captain takes a deep breath, "I've been doing this job a long time. I've seen a lot of detectives come and go. You stand out among them. You won't stop until you bring him home, safely. The person or persons who did this have no idea what they are up against. Or how you will move heaven and earth to find him."

She smiles faintly, touching his arm, as she walks out the door.

She picks up her phone, purse and keys from her desk and turning, walks to the elevator. She steps into the elevator, hits the button for the underground garage.

" _You don't let go. You don't back down. It's what makes you extraordinary."_

As the doors close, she takes a deep, cleansing breathe. She works hard to get them all right, but this one, is the _most_ important to her. She needs to get this one right for Alexis and Martha. She needs to get this one right for yourself; because she's afraid of this one; afraid she won't recover this time if she gets this one wrong.

"_Hey Dad! Dad, wake up" Alexis is standing over him. He's fallen asleep in his study again. "We need you, Dad."_

"_Richard! Wake up kiddo." Martha is standing over him. He's fallen asleep on the couch again. "We need you, Richard"_

"_Castle! Rick, wake up …." Kate is straddling him. He's fallen asleep in his bed again and she's bending down to whisper in his ear. "I need you, Rick."_

"Kate," a faint whisper escaping his lips. He lets out a groan, thinking that she's real, until he tries to move his hands to pull her towards his mouth. When his arms won't move, he slowly starts to wake up. He groans again, but this is from the pain he feels as he lifts his head and tries to open his eyes. It takes him a moment or two to focus, as he looks around the room.

He can tell he's in one of the old abandoned warehouses that cover the city; dozens and dozens that sprinkle across the 5 boroughs. He's been duct taped to an old chair; feet, thighs, wrists and across his mouth. He feels something trickling down his face and then drop off. He looks down and on his jeans, he finds a decent size blood stain. He feels something sticky on the left side of his neck. Pulling his bound wrists up to touch his neck, he pulls them back; blood! He cranes his neck back to see blood on his upper chest. Well, this is definitely not a good sign!

He continues to focus his gaze around the abandoned room, noticing a door at the far end. From the looks of it, the door is very old, but the many locks on the door, appear to be new. The only window, is also at the far end, opposite of the door. Small panes that have been freshly painted black. He looks up at the ceiling and notices several sky lights, the window propped open not too far from him. At least it's still daylight; early morning by the angle of the sun and it's sure to be a hot one. Great! This day is just getting better and better. Well, Castle, you certainly got yourself into trouble here.

"_Can't write your way out of this one, huh Castle."_

He looks over to the door as he hears the locks all being opened, one at a time. Two figures, both dressed in black and wearing masks, walk into the room. The larger of the two walks over to a small table and pulls it next to Castle's chair. He then walks back and returns to dump a bag and a water bottle on the table. The smaller of the two walks over and stands in front of Castle and rips off the duct tape.

"I guess I didn't hit you hard enough if you are awake already. I know these aren't your usual accommodations, but you won't be here for long," the captors states.

Castle clears his throat, "Look, if you want money, I can get you money. Just let me go."

The smaller of the two looks back at the larger captor and they both laugh, "This isn't about money. This is about you and your detective friend. She'll eventually figure out where you are, and when she comes to rescue you … Well, lets just say neither of you will be walking out of the building."

Castle struggles against the duct tape binding him, "No, leave her alone. I'll kill you if you harm her."

The captors both laugh, the smaller one says to Castle, "I think it's time for another nap." Gun in hand, the captor hits Castle across his right jaw, knocking him unconscious.


	3. Chapter 3

She pulls up to his building, turning at the corner and hitting the remote in the Crown Vic, the gate to the garage slowly opening. She notices, as she pulls into one of Castle's empty spaces, that the CSU team is already going over Castle's BMW.

She walks up to Ryan, "Anything?"

He turns to her, "They collected several sets of prints. Some receipts and his Ez-pass tag were all bagged. Nothing jumps out at us. It will take a while to do the prints."

She nods her head, "Well, we can assume Castle, Alexis and Martha; Gina," and she hesitates and adds, "Mine too."

He nods his head in response. "Building security is pulling all footage from the last 48 hours. We should have it shortly. I'll bring everything up when we are done here."

She looks around, "Where's Esposito?"

Without looking up Ryan answers, "He went with Lanie. They needed to make a stop before they came down. They should be upstairs by now."

She turns and heads toward the elevator, door opening just has she arrives. She steps in and pushes the button for the top floor. When she reaches Castle's floor, she steps out of the elevator, stepping to her left and heading down the hall. She slows as she approaches Castle's door. The chill she felt earlier has settled again on the back of her neck. She puts her hand to her stomach, as she tries to pull in as much oxygen into her lungs, pulling herself together.

She enters Castle's loft, acknowledges the officer standing there and immediately walks into the study. Lanie is already working with another CSU member, processing Castle's study and has just dropped the knife into an evidence bag.

Kate closes her eyes against the image and opens them, just as Lanie looks up at her, "Anything?"

Lanie holds her gaze for a moment and then answers, "We bagged a few items. Wallet, keys; didn't find his cell phone. Dusted for prints, found several sets. We should have them processed, along with the one's from his car, in about an hour. I took a sample of the blood stain from both the rug and the knife. Knife appears to be your standard six inch blade. Dusted it for prints; found none. Laptop was on the desk, powered up and running. It's password protected, so there's no way to unlock it without the password. Will said the FBI tech will take it, remove the hard drive and see what he can find."

"No," Kate answers her as Lanie watches her. "Leave the laptop for now. Alexis or Martha maybe able to help with that. If they can't, we'll have our own guys look at it; not the FBI."

Lanie pushes her self into a standing position and pulls Kate over to the side, "Kate, look I understand, believe me I do. But, we maybe able to use there expertise here."

Kate looks at Lanie, "As far as I'm concerned, this is _our _investigation. Will can interview Alexis, Martha, Gina and whomever else he feels is vital to the investigation. But, the rest, is being handled by us and the rest of the NYPD team here and back at the lab. If Will has a problem with that, then he can speak to me about it, and I'll set him straight."

They hear a slight cough and both look up. Standing in the doorway is FBI agent Will Sorenson, He slowly walks into the room and stops near Kate. "Kate, is there a problem?" Esposito and Ryan had followed Sorenson into the study.

With her arms crossed she answers him, "Nope, no problem Will. Lanie was just filling me in on your _offer _to have your techs go over the laptop. I told her it won't be needed, the NYPD team here and back at the lab will be processing everything. You, can interview whomever, you think is vital to the investigation."

He watches her silently. After a few moments, she arches her brow at him and he finally speaks, "Okay Kate. We'll play this your way for a little while. But, the minute this isn't working, we do it my way. It won't be up for discussion either."

She nods her head slightly and starts to walk past him. He grabs her arm, making her look at him. "Kate, you know the drill with these type of cases. You have to control the situation and your emotions."

She glares at him, as she pulls her arm from his grasp. "Don't start your crap with me already Will. Don't you dare stand there and tell me how to handle this situation or my emotions. You handle this "case" your way and I'll handle my friends "case" my way."

He steps back and puts up his hands, "Okay Kate. Again, we'll do this your way for now. But, I will pull you off of this, if I feel the need."

She looks at him, crosses her arms again and asks, "What have you got so far?"

"We've been compiling a list of family, ex-wives, close friends, business associates to start interviewing. I've already spoken with the Mayor and Montgomery earlier. We'll need to start speaking with your team. Carter can start with Ryan as soon as he's finished with Mrs. Rodgers and Castle's daughter."

Taking a deep breath, Kate's whispers, "How long have they been here?"

Will, realizing her emotional level just shot way up says, "Kate, you have to …." But, doesn't get to finish.

She's out the door of the study in a flash. Lanie, the boys and Will following behind.

"_Richard, I don't know why you just don't tell her."_

"_I've already told you why, Gina. She's with another man; she's happy,"_

"_Well, the look on her face when we left the precinct, that was not the look of a happy woman. She was crushed Richard, and I have a feeling your the reason."_

"Kate," he whispers as he slowly opens his eyes, flexing his jaw where he got clobbered earlier. Yep, that's going to leave a nasty mark.

"_I really am ruggedly handsome, aren't I?"_

"_I'm waiting for the break through."_

He looks up at the sky light and estimates the time to be around 10:00 am. He looks over at the table and sees the bag and bottled water. He reaches over and opens the bottle; takes a sip, enough to wet his throat. Closes the bottle and replaces it on the table. He reaches over and grabs the bag and opens it. Inside are two hot dogs, packets of mustard and relish. Sure, no ketchup.

He notices some napkins that were slipped in the bag as well. He pulls them out and reaches for the water bottle again. Wetting one of the napkins, he attempts to wash the cut on his head, he thinks he may need a few stitches, but at least, the bleeding has stopped. He wets another napkin and washes his neck, it burns. Rinsing his fingers, he gently moves them along his neck and can feel the cut, about 2 inches long. He pulls another napkin out, folds it in half and soaks it with water. Pressing it against his neck, hoping this will slow down the bleeding.

He takes another sip of the water and places it back on the table. He'll have to ration the water and the cold hot dogs. He's not sure when the captors will return. He flexes his hands, arms, legs no movement against the duct tape. Great. A project for later. He'll have to spend a little time working those loose. He scans the floor for anything metal, but sees nothing. Damn!

He puts his head back and closes his eyes. Hopefully, by now, the alarm company has sent the police to the loft. Once they enter and find the study, wrecked from the struggle, a call will be placed. Hopefully, someone will find the laptop, he hit the record button, it should all be recorded. Hopefully, it's Kate and the boys that are sent down. Kate, he knows, will take care of Alexis and Mother. He doesn't know who will be there to take care of her; he just wishes it could be him.


	4. Chapter 4

She slows as she she reaches the living room area of the great room. She looks over into the kitchen. There's a FBI agent looking over some files, another grabbing a bottled water out of the fridge. She stops when she looks into the dining room. Sitting across from Special Agent Carter is Martha and Alexis. Martha is busy answering the agents questions. Alexis has her head down, against her folded arms, face turned towards the living room area, eyes closed. Laying on the table, clutched in her left hand, a well worn monkey; the famous Monkey Bunkey.

Just as Kate opens her mouth to say her name, Alexis opens her eyes and looks directly at Kate. She jumps up, knocking the chair to the floor and whispers, "Kate." Martha looks up and watches, as her granddaughter propels herself across the room and right into Kate's arms. Kate wraps her arms around Alexis, pulling her close, as the teen is overcome with tears. Resting her head against Alexis', she closes her own eyes, fighting to keep her own tears back. "I'm here," she whispers softly in Alexis' ear. Kate opens her eyes, to see Martha walking towards them; her eyes bright with her own tears. Kate reaches out to Martha, pulling her against Alexis, sandwiching the teen between them, as Martha puts her arms around Kate.

Special Agent Carter and the other agent, quietly move out into the hall. Lanie wipes a single tear from her face. Esposito, standing next to her, reaches for her hand. Will, watches the scene, Ryan standing next to him.

"Looks like Castle's women will take care of each other," Ryan states quietly.

Will looks at him, "I'm not sure you should include Kate in that statement."

Ryan looks at him for a moment, "For a FBI agent, you really are clueless. Look at them together. I would say you can definitely include Beckett in that statement."

"_You are jealous; that I hooked her."_

"_What's to be jealous about. You couldn't reel her in."_

As Will watched the trio in front of him, he had to admit; that from where he was standing, Castle had not only hooked her, but he had reeled her in as well.

Martha releases her hold on Kate and Alexis, gently runs her thumb across Kate's cheek, wiping the tear away and says, "Alexis, darling. Why don't you take Dr. Parish upstairs and show her where to put the rest of the bags she brought in earlier."

Alexis nods her head as she releases Kate. "I'll be right here, Alexis. I'm not going anywhere for right now," Kate says, squeezing Alexis hand before releasing it.

Lanie walks up to them and takes Alexis' hand, "Come on. You can help me carry the bags upstairs, show me where to put them." She turns and Lanie follows. Kate watches them each pick up a black over night bag and, silently, head up the stairs.

Kate turns her attention back to Martha asking, "How's she holding up?"

"Okay. She'll be better now that you're here. She's been asking for you since I picked her up at Princeton. We've been answering a lot of questions. Some that neither of us knew the answers too," she pointedly looks at Will.

Kate turns, narrowing her eyes on Will, and turns back to Martha, clasping the woman's hands in hers. "I'm sure you know that he's only trying to do his job. But, I'll make sure that he gives both you and Alexis a little break."

Martha squeezes Kate's hands, "I'm going to check on Alexis and Dr. Parish, see if they need a hand. And, I'm going to try to get Alexis to lay down for a little while." Reaching up and touching Kate's cheek she states, "Just so you know, sweetheart, I'm better now that you're here too."

Kate whispers, "Thank you Martha."

She watches as Martha walks up the stairs, when she's out of sight, she spins around and faces Will. He starts to speak, but she holds her hand up, "I know, you're doing your job. Have a little compassion, Will. They are dealing with a lot. Rick means the world to both of them."

At the mention of Castle's given name, Will gives her a pointed look, "Really, Kate? It's Rick now." As he continues to watch her, he sees he's crossed a line. He puts up his hands, but it's too late.

She walks up to him, pointing her finger at his chest, "Not today Will. I don't want or need to hear any crap about Castle today or any day, for that matter. I don't want to hear about controlling the situation or my emotions. I can handle this investigation, but I will handle it my way."

"Look Kate," he says as he watches her. "I get that this is not just a "regular" case for you and your team. But, your my partner on this investigation and we need to be on the same page on how to handle it." He was too busy talking, that he didn't notice the change in her body language. Esposito and Ryan saw it and they waited, knowing Sorenson had crossed a line, again.

Anger flashing in her eyes, she steps closer to him, "Let's get something straight Will. You are NOT my partner, on this investigation, or with anything else. MY partner, he's been taken, by force, from his home. God only knows where he is, what's happened to him or if he's still ..", her voice catches and she closes her eyes.

Taking a deep breath, she opens her eyes and turns to Ryan, "Have Jones run the prints and everything that was bagged, up to the lab. Perlmutter is going to run it all himself. Tell Jones to bring the results, the photos taken, back here." He nods and walks off.

Looking at Esposito she says, "I'm going up to check on Alexis and Martha. Lanie's been up there for a while and I want to make sure everything is okay," she turns, heading quickly up the stairs.

Will watches her ascend the stairs; shaking his head. Esposito walks up to him, "Do that to her again, and FBI agent or not, I will make you bleed."

Rick looks up at the sky light, guessing the time is around 11:30a. The temperature of the room as gone up considerably, by at least 10 degrees. But, he's not concerned about the temperature at the moment. His focus is on trying to loosen the duct tape binding him to the chair. He's worked for about a hour and has been able to loosen his left leg, considerably. Deciding he needs to give that leg a rest, he begins to work on his right leg. As he tries to adjust in the chair a little, he feels something shift in front pocket of his jeans. Frowning slightly, he restarts his efforts to loosen his right leg.

He looks up, at the sound coming from outside. He stops his efforts, listening, trying to make out the sound in the distance. Closing his eyes, he tries to focus, waiting to hear it again. The low sounding blast goes off again. It takes a second, but he realizes what is creating the sound; tug boat horn. He can also make, very faintly, in the distance, construction sounds. He does a quick run down of all the possible places that he could be held. After several moments, he comes to the conclusion that he has to be at the Brooklyn Navy Yard.

He's about to renew his efforts to loosen his right leg, when he hears the locks on the door being undone. He immediately stops, not wanting to tip them off. He watches as the larger of the captors walks in first, the smaller on following.

"Well, Mr. Castle, it seems you were a busy boy."

Castle thinks that they have noticed he's been working to loosen the duct tape. Not wanting to give anything away, he plays along. "What are you talking about?"

The smaller of the two steps forward, arms folded and watches him. "We took a nice little ride up to your loft. The place is crawling with NYPD cops and several FBI agents. It seems they responded very quickly. I can only come to the conclusion that, some how, you tipped them off."

Castle answers innocently, "I'm not sure how I could have tipped anyone off." Knowing full well, that he had tripped the alarm. As they were dragging him out the door of the loft, he was able to push on the very small button near the lock on the door frame. His captors, in too much of a hurry to get him out the door, never bothered to check if the door had actually latched shut; and of course, it hadn't. When he pushed the button, a small square of metal that popped out. Causing the door not to latch completely.

"I think you're lying Mr. Castle and that makes me very angry. My friend here is going to give you a small taste of what happens when people lie to me," the smaller captor states, stepping back.

The large captor steps forward and Castle braces himself for what will happen next.


	5. Chapter 5

She walks down the hallway towards Alexis room, just as Lanie is walking out, shutting the door behind her. "Everything okay?"

Lanie nods her head, "Yes, poor kid. Martha's trying to get her to rest." Lanie watches her for a moment, reaching out and touching Kate's arm, "How are you holding up?"

"I'm fine," she answers softly. But, she can tell Lanie doesn't believe her. Wisely, Lanie doesn't push.

"Okay. I'm going down to check in with CSU team. Why don't you go in, Alexis was asking for you again." Squeezing Kate's arm, she continues down the hallway to the stairs.

Kate takes a deep breath and knocks softly on the door, while opening it. As she walks in, she sees that Alexis is laying down, Martha sitting next to her on the bed. Martha looks up, smiling slightly, waving her over. Alexis turns her head, watching as Kate walks into the room. Martha and Kate exchange a look.

Martha gets up from her spot on the bed, "Why don't I leave you two alone. I'm going to go downstairs and make some coffee for everyone." She touches Kate's arm as she walks by and closes the door behind her.

Walking around to the other side of the bed, she steps out of her shoes and climbs onto the bed next to Alexis, wrapping her arms around the teen. Alexis puts her head on Kate's shoulder, her arm around Kate. "Kate," she whispers softly.

"Yes," she answers as she tucks Alexis' hair behind her ear.

Alexis looks up at Kate, "Do you think my dad is okay? I'm worried about him." A new set of tears track slowly down her face.

Kate reaches over, cupping her hand against Alexis' cheek, "I know you're worried about him. I'm worried about him too. But, there are a lot of good people working together on this and we'll find him and bring him home."

Still looking at Kate, "I know, but what if ..." swallowing, she continues, " .. it's too late? We need him. We can't live without him," finally letting out the sob she's been holding back, turning her head into the crook of Kate's neck.

Pulling Alexis closer, she lets the teen cry it out. She recognizes Alexis' fear, because she feels it too. That she needs him and that she, too, couldn't live without him. But, another part of her fear, the part she's buried deep down, is afraid she may be too late and he would never now.

Her mind races back to that day, that last day at the precinct. She had broken it off with Demming that afternoon, Finally realizing, that she could no longer deny what she felt, and still feels, for Castle. She wanted desperately tell him how she felt about him. But, with the arrival of Gina, came the announcement that she would be spending the summer in the Hamptons; at Castle's invitation. Her opportunity gone, she watched them walk away, arm in arm. She had called out to him, in desperation, asking if he would return in the fall and he said he would be back. She knew he would return, but would it be too late?

She wondered the same thing now; was it too late? Would she never get the chance to finally tell him, the depth of her feelings for him? And, did he feel the same way about her? A part of her, the part that listened to her heart, had a feeling that he did. Holding Alexis close against her, eyes filling with her own tears, she prays she gets the chance to tell him.

"_My Dad. You have to wake up and help." gently kissing his cheek._

"_My Richard. You have to wake up and help." gently kissing his cheek._

"_My Rick. I need you to wake up. I need your help." gently pressing her lips to his._

"Kate," he whispers softly. Slowly, picking his head up and opening his eyes. Yep, still in the same dump. Looking around he notices his two hosts, are gone, for now. He slowly starts to take inventory. Sticking his tongue out, he feels a small cut on his bottom lip. Yep, that's going to make kissing a little difficult; not that he has anyone to kiss, yet. He's sure that he's going to have a bruise around his right eye, from the punch he received from the larger man. A soft chuckle escapes him. Yep, he's looking real attractive right now.

"_Oh. Pretty butch, Castle."_

"_I know, right."_

He knows he took a couple of punches to the stomach, a shot or two to the upper chest. He takes a couple of deep breaths, doesn't appear to be any broken ribs, that's a good sign. He decides to test his little project he was working on earlier. Much to his surprise, both legs are still loose. He closes his eyes and says a prayer. At least they hadn't discovered what he had been doing. Glancing up at the sky light, he estimates it's about 1:00pm; not even 12 hours since he was taken. Hopefully, Kate and the boys are making some progress. Looking over at the table, he spots the water bottle and the bag. Okay, Rick. It's lunch time and then back to work.


	6. Chapter 6

She slowly moves away from Alexis and off the bed. She grabs the throw from the foot of the bed and covers Alexis with it. Leaning over, she places a kiss on the top of her head, wiping the lone tear from her cheek. Picking up her shoes, she quietly walks out the door, shutting it behind her. Stopping only to put her shoes back on, she heads quietly down the hall and down the stairs to the lower level.

She sees Martha, sitting at the table with Carter and Will, answering another series of questions. She steps forward, but Martha looks up and waves her off. Kate turns and heads over to the kitchen island, where Lanie is pouring a cup of coffee, she hands it to Kate as she approaches.

"Thanks. I see your keeping watch for me." she states as she looks over at Martha.

"Yep. She's holding her own with them. They're asking her about any of his business associates, past and present, whom might have had a beef with him. Doesn't seem like there are any likely candidates." She turns her attention back to Kate. "How's Alexis?"

"Okay. Worried about Castle. She finally cried herself to sleep. I'm hoping she sleeps for a little while. I'm sure Will is going to want to speak with her again, but he's going to have to wait. I'm sure he won't be happy with that, but he has no choice." she answers, sipping the coffee; making a face.

Seeing Kate's facial expression, "Martha made the coffee, not me."

"No, the coffee is fine. It's just not what I normally drink. Castle brings my coffee …." her voice trails off. Looking into the coffee cup, she puts it down on the counter, pushing it away.

"_Grande skim latte, two pumps sugar free vanilla and a bear claw"_

She looks up at Lanie, whom reaches out and lays her hand on Kate's arm, "We're going to find him Kate. There are a lot of good people working together on this."

Kate smiles, placing her hand on top of Lanie's, "Yes, I know. It's the same thing I just told Alexis upstairs." Squeezing her hand, she releases it. Lanie drops her hand.

"So, where are we with the lab? Where are Ryan and Esposito?"

"The prints are almost done. Perlmutter is going to call the captain when they are finished. The captain dispersed all the cases you three where working on to the other detectives. He's having some of the equipment packed up and IT is coming down, to set up a few laptops here for you and the boys. He's going to bring the lab work and the photos down himself, when they are ready. The boys, are re-canvasing some of the neighbors and security again. The other FBI agent is talking with maintenance man in the building."

Kate nods, as she watches Will get up from the table, walking over to her and Lanie. "She's tough. Went through all the business associates of Castle's. Nothing seems to be jumping out at us. She did say he sent her a text this morning, early. Only saying that he was in Manhattan, he needed to right a wrong, but would call her later today, after his meeting."

She nods, her brow furrowing, as she looks over at Martha. "He had to right a wrong? What the hell does that mean? Who was the meeting with?"

"Not sure. I'm hoping that Alexis may be able to shed some light on that when I speak with her. Where is she, by the way."

Crossing her arms and turning her full attention on Will, "She's upstairs, sleeping. She needs to rest right now."

Deciding he didn't want to fight with her again, "Okay. It can wait until she wakes up. Besides, I have someone else coming down to question anyway."

"Who?"

Before he can answer, he looks over at the officer at the door. Both, Kate and Lanie following his gaze. Standing there, showing her ID to the officer, is the one person Kate didn't want to see today. Gina.

After his lunch of a cold hot dog and a stale bun, Castle went back to work on loosening his right leg. The temperature in the room, was rising again, up another 10 degrees. The fact that his shirt was sticking to skin was a dead give a way too. He still had some of the buttons undone from earlier in the morning. Looking down he could see his sweat, mixing with the dried blood and turning it a nice shade of red. It runs down the valley of muscle and dark colored hair formed on his stomach, staining both his shirt and the top of his jeans. His jeans where covered in dust, probably from being dragged in from outside and his blood. Yep, he wasn't going to make the cover of GQ with this look he had going on today.

Taking a quick break from his project, he looks up at the sky light. Yep, it's about 2:30pm. Time is just tick-ticking away. He looks over to the other side of the room, at the window. From what he can see from here, it doesn't appear to be a new window. Hopefully, the framing around the small panes of glass will be rusted out enough for him to break through. He wasn't sure how high up he was but, he will deal with that when the time comes. Okay, break time over; project time. At that thought, he chuckles out loud. He would have never thought, that planning his own escape, would become a project. He just hopes he's successful in completely his project on time.


	7. Chapter 7

Gina, had taken Martha's place at the dining room table. Will and Carter where questioning her about Castle. Martha and Lanie, sitting on the stools at the kitchen island, sipping their coffees, chatting about really nothing. Kate, standing on the other side, was half listening to the two women across from her. Her focus was across the room, watching the interview with Gina and picking up snippets of the questioning.

"No, I only knew he was in town when I checked my email this morning. He sent it early, at 6:15 am. He said he had a meeting with a friend, that he was in town for a day or two and the book would be done in two weeks," she stated to Will.

"When was the last time you saw him?" Carter asked. Kate held her breath.

"That would have to be on June 1st. I had gone with him to the house in the Hamptons, to get him to finish the next Nikki Heat book. He was way past his original deadline," she looks over at Kate and then looks back at Will, "I wanted to make sure he was back on track and finish the book. Originally, I was supposed to spend the summer there with him, but after three days, it was clear, it wasn't my company he wanted. He promised he would finish the book, so I came back to Manhattan." She looks back over at Kate again, then turned her attention back to Will.

Kate leans her arms against the counter, head down, eyes closed. God damn it! God damn it! Straightening, she opens her eyes, the sting of tears just starting to form. Martha and Lanie are watching her, silently.

Martha reaches out, placing her hand on Kate's. Martha softly asks, "Darling, what's wrong.?"

Holding Martha's gaze, Kate whispers, "I just overheard Gina say she left the Hamptons on the first of June. Do you know if that's true?"

"Yes. I spoke with Richard that day, he said he sent her packing. That after an hour of them being out there, he knew that he had made a huge mistake. I tried to tell him not to worry. His only response to me was that I didn't understand; that it was the biggest mistake of his life. That he was stupid, blind to what was in front of him. That he didn't think he could fix it and that it may be too late. He wouldn't tell me what he meant. I talked with him a few times after that, but he just never seemed to be happy." Looking at Kate, "Is something wrong?"

Squeezing Martha's hand and releasing it, she shakes her head, "Nothing's wrong Martha. But, when we do find your son, and I'm sure that he's okay, I'm going to kill him." She looks at Lanie, "Is the study clear for me to go through now? I want to see if there's anything we missed and check on that laptop on his desk."

"It's okay. There are several extra sets of latex gloves in the ME kit. Do you want my help?" she asks, already knowing what her answer would be.

"No thanks. I need to be alone for a few minutes." She stops next to Martha, squeezes her shoulder, and continues into the study.

Martha turns to Lanie, "Okay, do you want to fill me in on what's going on between my son and Kate?"

Nodding her head and keeping her voice low, Lanie begins to fill Martha in about her friend and Castle.

He's managed to loosen his right leg from the duct tape. His legs feel better now, they were stiff from being so tightly wrapped to the chair. He's managed to work on the duct tape around his hands too. Not as much work put into the hands; didn't want that to be too obvious. He was finally able to work a small corner down and fold it back over. It will be easy enough for him to rip that off his hands, once they leave again. Again, he looks over at the window in the far corner. Hoping again, that he can escape thru the window. If he can't … well, he doesn't want to think about it.

He turns his thoughts to Alexis. He can remember the day she was born, like it was yesterday. Now, she's off at the summer program at Princeton; she'll be a junior this September. He wonders where the years have gone and how he got so lucky to have such a wonderful daughter. How much he loves her and how proud he is of her. He hopes to get the chance to tell her that everyday for the rest of his life.

His eyes rest on the door across the room, as he reaches for the water bottle, taking a sip. He's figured out there time line, they seem to come back every few hours. He can't have them walking in, while he's escaping thru the window. So, for now, he sits and waits.


	8. Chapter 8

She walks into his study, gloves in hand and takes several deep breaths,. Why, didn't he call her? Damn it! But, she also knows, she could have called him too. She had picked up her cell phone, several times, her finger hovering over his speed dial button; but, she never pushed it. She started text messages and always hit delete; never sending them. One night, when she couldn't sleep, she got dressed, packed a bag and headed out on I-495 East; towards the Hamptons. She got to the Manorville exit, turned onto County Route 111 heading south towards Sunrise Highway and turned around. Once back in Manhattan, instead of going back to her new apartment, she went straight to the precinct and throw herself into a current case. She never told anyone about that ride, or the other 3 nights she repeated it; she never told Lanie.

Taking a deep breath, she slips on the gloves, checking the floor to ceiling bookcases lining the entrance to his study. Reference books, his own novels, and a few novels written by his "poker" group line most of the shelves. A few awards, a boat, a glass vase and various other items line the rest of the shelves. Through the open shelves, she can see Gina speaking with both Martha and Lanie. Turning away, she walks toward the alcove area, checking the contents behind the doors in the built-in units. She silently hopes that Gina doesn't come in here, because she's not in any mood for the woman today.

She looks at some of the framed photos, lining the the shelves and smiles. Pictures of a much younger Castle with Martha, Castle and Alexis and several photos with the three of them together. One picture catches her eye and she picks it up to look at it; a small smile tucks at her lips. A picture of Castle, holding the hand of a much younger Alexis, walking towards the park.

"_I just never figured you for Mr. Mom,"_

"_Actually, the best days of my life."_

Putting the framed photo back, she moves along to his "murder board", darkened. She wonders if he has one at his place in the Hamptons. She continues along the rest of the room, checking the shelves and contents behind the doors in the rest of the cabinets. She turns back to the door that she knows leads into his bedroom and pushes it open.

Standing in the doorway, almost afraid to walk in, she doesn't notice anything out of the ordinary. The room appears not to have been lived in for several weeks. She does notice two black overnight bags on the bed. She'll have to let Lanie know that the CSU team missed them and will have to go through them. She walks over to the opposite side of the room, walking thru the open doorway and to the left. She finds herself in a very large walk-in closet, larger then her bedroom in her apartment. Only one side is filled with Castle's cloths, the other side empty. She runs her hands along the fabrics and she can smell a hint of his cologne. Turning, she walks across to the other side of the room, thru the open doorway and into his bathroom

His bathroom, is smaller then the walk-in, but still larger then her bedroom. A huge jacuzzi tub and separate shower areas dominate the room. Both large enough to accommodate two people. A double sink area and a separated area for the toilet occupy the rest of the room. Done in muted grays and blues, and despite the size, she feels relaxed in here. Taking a deep breath, she can smell his cologne in here too. She shakes her head gently, and walks out of the bathroom and his bedroom. She needs to focus on finding him.

Walking back into his study, she looks over at the laptop on his desk as she approaches. Picking up the laptop and moving around his desk, she sits down in his chair. A movement in the doorway catches her eye, and she looks up. Standing there, watching Kate, is Gina.

He looks up at the sky light, determining it's around 4:00pm. He looks over at the door, wondering were they are, they should have returned by now. Not that he's missed them, but the sooner they return and leave, the sooner he can get out of here. He knows that Kate and the gang are probably working as quickly as they can, but he also knows how long it can take to gather the evidence. He prays they find him, or that he can escape, before it's too late. Looking at the door again, he wonders where his hosts are and what they are doing. He knows, it can't be good for him; he knows it can't be good for any of them.

They've been watching her. Watching her move between home, work and home again. They've been following her and her associates around the city. They know where she is right now, and they know the perfect time to grab her. Timing is everything. They just need to wait. They just need to be patient.


	9. Chapter 9

Gina looks at the woman sitting behind Rick's desk, his _muse. _But, Gina knows she's more than just a muse to him. She's been more than just a muse to him for a very long time. Walking into the study, she drops her purse, keys and cell phone onto one of the leather chairs; she sits in the opposite one. The two woman continue to stare at each other.

Clearing her throat, Kate says, "Gina. Is there something I can help you with?"

Crossing her legs, she continues to watch Kate. Tired and really not in the mood for it, Kate looks down at the laptop; hitting the power button, waiting for the log on screen. She finally looks back up at Gina, raising her eyebrow.

Gina finally answers her, "No, there's nothing you can help me with, but I think I might be able to help you." Kate stares, eyebrow still raised. Gina continues, "I've known Richard for a long time; most of that time as his publisher and some of it as his wife. We didn't part on the best of terms, but we've managed to work through it. I was pleasantly surprised how much we got along that night on the phone. What was more surprising is that he asked me to go with him to the Hamptons. I eventually agreed because he needed to finish the book, it was a great chance to get out of the city for the summer and a small part of me thought, we could rekindle what we had before it had gone wrong."

Kate starts to get out the chair, "Well, I hope it worked out for both of you. Now if you'll excuse me I really need to see how ….." she never finishes her sentence. Cut off by Gina's laughter.

"Oh please, Kate. You know as well as I do that there was no chance of it working out. I knew two hours into the drive, that I had been his second choice. I knew three hours later that his first and only choice had been you. He didn't deny it three days later, when I asked him after my bags where packed. " she stands, bending down to pick up her belongings from the opposite chair.

Turning back to Kate, "I saw the look on your face, when you realized he had asked me to the Hamptons. I saw the look on his face, while I was there for three days. It's very clear to me how you both feel about each other." She turns and walks to the door. Stopping, she turns, looking back at Kate, "Nothing happened between us while I was out there. I thought you might want to know."

Kate felt a rush a relief go through her. "Thank you", she replies softly.

Nodding her head, Gina answers, "If I need to answer anymore questions, Agent Sorenson has my card. Good luck, I know that you'll find him and bring him home safely." She turns and heads out the door to the loft.

Kate sits back down in the chair, lets out a breath, and closes her eyes. A part of her is happy that nothing happened between Castle and Gina. But, a bigger part of her is sad, because they have both wasted so much time apart. She can't change what neither of them was able to say in the past, but she can control how she handles the future. She just hopes they can find him, so they have a chance at that future; that it's not too late.

She opens her eyes, as the lone tear falls and standing in the doorway is Martha. She walks into the study, sitting down in the chair that Gina had just vacated. Finally, breaking the silence, "Sweetheart, do you want to talk about it?"

Kate, shaking her head and wiping the tear away replies, "If I talk about how I feel right now, I won't be able to do my job. I need to do my job, Martha, especially now. I have to do everything that I can to make sure you and Alexis doesn't loose him." Lowering her voice, eyes filling with tears she continues, "I have to make sure that I don't loose him either."

* * *

He has a really bad feeling and he can't shake it. It's 5:00pm and his captors haven't returned. From the schedule that they were following before, they should have been back about a half hour ago. He's worried. Worried that he's now wasted too much time. He wanted to wait until they had returned and left again, so that he knew he would have enough time to escape. He had it all planned out. But, the longer that it took them to return, the hope of him escaping today were diminishing.

It was at that moment he heard the locks on the door opening. Thank God! Hopefully, he'll be out of here in an hour. Together they walked in, locking the door behind them. Another paper bag of food and a bottled water were placed on the table next to him.

"You'll have company soon, Mr. Castle." the smaller captor states.

"I told you before, don't hurt her. I have money, just don't hurt her."

"I don't think your in any position to be giving any orders, Mr. Castle," answers the smaller captor, as he turns to face Castle again. "I think it's time for you to take another nap. But, a much longer nap this time."

Castle was too busy watching the smaller captor that he didn't notice the larger one standing behind him. When he felt the prick from the needle in his neck, he knew he wasn't going to escape anytime soon.


	10. Chapter 10

Detectives Esposito and Ryan return from the re-canvas of Castle's neighbors. Ryan is holding the burned DVD copy of the security cameras from the garage, elevator and hallways in the building.

As they walk into the loft, Ryan looks into the study. He sees Kate and Martha in the study, talking in hushed tones. He catches Kate's eye and holds up the DVD case; she nods in his direction, holding up her right index finger. He nods his head and continues into the kitchen area. Esposito is speaking with Lanie, pouring three cups of coffee.

Ryan looks at Lanie, "Is Beckett okay? Her and Martha are in the study together."

Lanie nods her head, "Yes. Gina was here and when she was done with Sorenson, she went into the study to speak with Kate for a little while. After Gina left, Martha went in to check on her."

Sorenson walks over, "Where's Kate?"

"She's in Castle's study, talking with Martha." she answers.

He nods his head and turns toward the study. "Will, give her a minute. She's having a private conversation with Martha." Lanie states, holding up a cup of coffee for him. Trying to distract him she adds, "Was Gina able to give you any information about why Castle was in the city?"

He walks back, accepting the coffee and answers, "Not too much. She only received an email from him early this morning, just after 6:00am. She said he stated the book would be finished in about two weeks. That he was in the city for a day or two and that he had a very important meeting with a friend. Not really too much to go on there. Martha stated earlier that he sent her a text, saying his was in the city and that he would call her later. Business associates that I asked them both about, seem to be a dead end but, we'll check them all out anyway." He takes a sip of his coffee and looks at Esposito, "Any word when the lab work will be completed?"

"I just got off the phone with the captain about 10 minutes ago. Perlmutter called him and he should have all the results, including the photos, in about a half hour. The captain will be down with them. Henry, from our IT department, should be here soon with a few laptops for us to use while we are here."

Martha comes out of the study and heads over towards the group. "Coffee, Mrs R?" Esposito asks as she sits next to Sorenson.

"No to the coffee, but a bottled water would be great, if you don't mind," she answer as she looks at Lanie. "Dear, Kate would like to speak with you."

Lanie nods, leaving the group and walking into the study. Kate is sitting behind the desk, looking at Castle's laptop. One look at Kate and Lanie can tell she has been crying. She sits in the chair, Martha and Gina had vacated. "Kate … everything okay?"

Kate looks up at Lanie, "I'll be okay. I need to stop thinking about the 'what ifs' and get my head back into this investigation. I'm not helping Castle by sitting here, feeling sorry for myself. I can deal with all of it, later, after we bring him home safely."

Lanie nods her head, "Well, you know the three of us, will do everything we can to help you bring him home safely."

"Thanks Lanie," Kate says and continues, "I found two overnight bags in Castle's bedroom earlier. You might want to go through them and see what Castle had left in the bags."

Looking at Kate, Lanie asnwers, "They aren't Castle's bags and I know what's in them already."

Her eyebrow raised, she waits for Lanie to continue, "We knew you weren't going to leave Alexis and Martha here by themselves at night. So, Esposito and I stopped at your apartment and I packed a few things for you for a couple of days. Martha told me to put your bags in Castle bedroom. The other bags, that Alexis and I brought upstairs earlier, are for the three of us, we are staying too." Feeling overwhelmed by her friends and there concern, Kate just nods her head.

Kate looks up at the doorway as Will walks in, "Kate, I'm ready to talk with Alexis. Mrs Rodgers just went up to see if she was awake. I know you said you wanted to sit with her while I questioned her."

"Yes, I do. I'll be right out." she answers him as she stands up. Lanie stands up and follows Will out of the study. Looking down at the laptop, the cursor blinking back at her she decides she's going to have to ask Alexis and Martha about the password for his laptop.

She walks out and sees Alexis coming down the stairs, holding Monkey Bunkey in her hand; Matha following behind her. Kate reaches out her hand to Alexis, and the teen doesn't hesitate to link her fingers with Kate's. "You ready?" Kate whispers.

Alexis looks at Kate and then at Martha, "Can you and Gram sit with me while I answer Agent Sorenson's questions?"

Squeezing her hand, while looking at Martha, Kate nods her head. They walk over to the dining room table, taking there seats, Alexis in between them.

Will looks over at Kate, she raises her eyebrow; waiting.

Clearing his throat, he looks at Alexis, "Are you ready to begin?"

* * *

"_Rick", she says softly, while he captures her earlobe between his teeth. " Oh God …. let me open the door."_

_He releases her long enough for her to turn towards the door, but wraps his arms around her from behind, as she puts the key in the lock. He leans forward, placing his lips on the back of her neck. Moving slowly behind her ear, to the spot that he discovered just earlier tonight, nipping softly. He feels her body tremble against his, a moan escaping her lips, as he soothes the spot with this tongue. _

_As the door opens, she reaches behind her, grabbing him by his dinner jacket, pulling him into the room, the door closing behind them. She drops her purse, as he faces her and backs her into the door. Placing one hand on her hip, he raises his other hand to her face, Running his thumb across her cheek, to her jawline and across her bottom lip, watching her response._

"_You're beautiful." he whispers, as he places a gentle kiss on her lips, reaching up and pulling the pins from her hair slowly. Her auburn tresses slowly falling just past her shoulders. Running his fingers through her hair, tipping her head back in the process, he slowly claims her mouth. _

_Her hands slowly move up his chest and over his shoulders, pushing his dinner jacket off his shoulders. He drops both of his arms, while still kissing her, and the jacket falls to the rug. He places both of his hands against the door, trapping her between the door and his body. She reaches up and starts working on the knot on his tie; it joins the jacket on the rug. _

_He wraps his arms around her body, pulling her against him and breaking the kiss. "Kate … honey. Look at me" as she opens her eyes, he whispers, "I love you, Kate."_

_Looking into his blue eyes, she whispers, "I love you too, Rick" as she pulls him down to her waiting mouth. _

His hosts are gone, it would be the perfect time for his escape. But the man bound to the chair isn't moving. In his drug induced sleep, he's dreaming. It's a dream he doesn't want to wake from, because in reality, they have never kissed and they have never spoken what their hearts know to be true.


	11. Chapter 11

"Do you know anything about any of his business associates? Ever witness any arguments between any of them?"

"No. But, my dad didn't tell me too much about any of his business associates. He never had any meetings with any of them here at our home."

"Do you know of any threats he may have received? Personal or via mail?"

She looks at Martha and then back at Sorenson, "I heard him say once that it was an occupational hazard. Some of his fan mail was disturbing, but I don't think he ever felt his life was threatened."

"Have you ever noticed anyone hanging around outside the building recently?"

"I've been away at Princeton. So, I haven't been here for at least 8 weeks or more. Prior to that, I don't recall seeing anyone around."

"What time did you speak to your dad this morning?"

"It was a little after 6:00am. He said he had just driven into the city from the Hamptons."

"Did he give you any indication that there was any problem?"

"No …. he sounded fine when I spoke with him. He wanted to know if I wanted to have a late lunch or an early dinner with him. He said he was going to stay in the city for a day or two"

Kate looks up and sees the captain walking up to Esposito and Ryan. She interrupts Will, "Sorry." She looks at Alexis, "I'm going to talk with Captain Montgomery. I'll be right over there," pointing at the group in the kitchen. "Call me, if you need me."

Alexis nods her head and looks back at Will, waiting for him to continue.

Kate walks over to the group as the captain hands the files from the lab work to Esposito. Looking at Martha and Alexis he asks Kate, "How are they holding up?"

"They seem to be holding up okay. Will is just finishing up with Alexis. He's already spoken with Martha and Castle's ex-wife Gina was here earlier. Both Martha and Gina told Will that Castle stated he had a meeting today. Neither was able to shed any light on whom he was meeting with. I'm not sure if Alexis will be have any additional information either."

Montgomery nods his head, while watching her. He takes her arm and moves her away from the group, "How are you holding up?"

"I'm fine. I'm worried about Alexis and Martha. I want to find Castle and bring him home safely." Watching Esposito and Ryan looking through the files the captain brought down she asks, "What did the lab find?"

Deciding to let her off the hook for now, Montgomery answers, "Last activity on his Ez-pass account was this morning; Queens-Midtown Tunnel at 5:45am. Receipts in the car are all from various cafes and shops in the Hamptons; nothing there. Finger prints in the BMW belong to Castle, Alexis, Martha, Gina …. and you." She nods her head. "And … the blood found on the rug and on the knife is Castle's."

Henry, from the IT department, walks over to the captain. "Hey, captain. I have four laptops all ready. Upgrades, the works, per your request. I just need to check on Mr. Castle's internet service and then these will be ready to use."

Kate looks at Henry, "His internet service equipment is in his study." Nodding his head, he takes the laptops and heads into the study.

She turns back to the captain, to continue there conversation, but sees Martha looking at her. Concerned, she steps past Montgomery and walks over to the table.

"No, he said his meeting wasn't about the book, it was about Nikki Heat. That he had to fix something with Nikki Heat. Something he should have done before he went to the Hamptons and that's why he came back."

Looking confused, Will asks, "So … he wasn't meeting with anyone?"

"My dad said he had a meeting about Nikki Heat. Something he had to fix. He made it sound like it was a mistake he made … with Nikki Heat."

At that moment, Kate feels sick to her stomach. Pulling out the chair, next to Martha, she slowly lowers herself into it. She looks at Martha, who reaches out and grabs her hand.

Will continues, "Alexis, he had to be referring to the book. You must have been mistaken."

Alexis, frustrated and with tears in her eyes, looks at Kate. Alexis eyes widen, as she realizes what her dad had been saying to her. Eyes locked on each other, she whispers, "He was talking about you … he came back for you."

* * *

_She slowly unbuttons his shirt, pulling it from his pants and pushing it from his shoulders. With his help, it joins his jacket and tie on the rug. She runs her hands, slowly, back up his chest, wrapping one around his neck, the other around his waist. "God Kate..." he whispers, as he places kisses along her jawline, moving to her neck. _

_He spreads his fingers thru her hair, the soft curls caressing his skin. Reaching behind her with one hand and pulling the zipper to her dress down to her waist. Moving his hand around her waist, up her arm and slowly sliding the material from her shoulders. He reaches for her hands and lowering them to her sides, as the dress slides off her body and joins his clothes on the rug. _

_Looking down at her, the tip of his fingers run lightly across her chest. She closes her eyes, letting out a moan, as goosebumps appear on her skin, where his fingers had just been. With a grin he says, "Cold ...maybe I should put your dress back on." _

_A smile parts her lips as she opens her eyes, "You do remember that I carry a gun …." as she reaches for his belt buckle. She slowly unfastens the buckle, sliding the button open and unzipping his pants, sliding them from his hips. She watches as he bends down, not taking his eyes off her, as he tosses his shoes and socks somewhere onto the floor, kicking his pants away from them. _

_She reaches out to him, sliding her hand along the length of him, watching as he closes his eyes, a loud groan escaping his mouth. Opening his eyes, as her hands slip around his waist, he slides his hands down her body, and in one fluid motion, pulls her slip up and over her head. _

_Reaching down, he pulls her up against him, picking her up as she wraps her arms and legs around him. He reaches back, pulling her shoes off, tossing them onto the floor. Moving forward, he traps her between his body and the door. Feeling the hard length of him against her, "Please Rick …." she moans as she leans forward kissing his neck._

_He flicks the lock on the door and switches the light off. Plunging her apartment into semi darkness, the street lights from outside casting a soft glow through out her apartment. He finds her mouth with his, while turning and walking toward her bedroom. _

The man, still bound in his chair, still dreaming, throws his head back, "Kate …..."


	12. Chapter 12

Kate, her eyes still locked on Alexis, nods her head. Taking a deep breath, Kate closes her eyes against the burn in them and the lump raising in her throat. Martha, still holding her hand, squeezes gently.

"Kate .." Alexis whispers. Her eyes open, looking at the teen. "I'm sorry I didn't say anything sooner. I didn't realize dad was referring to you until now. I didn't piece it together until now." Her voice cracking, "If anything happens to him, because I didn't speak up …..." a new set of tears fills her eyes.

Kate releases Martha's hand, getting up and moving quickly, pulling Alexis from her chair and into her arms. Kate whispers in her ear, "Don't. This is not your fault. You did nothing wrong. You understand me." The teen nods, holding onto Kate, burying her face into Kate's shoulder.

Will, is the first to break the silence, "Kate, did he contact you?"

Looking at him, and not trusting her own voice, she shakes her head.

He continues, "How can we be sure he was talking about you? Maybe he was referring to someone else."

Alexis, turning her head to look at Will answers, "No, he was talking about Kate."

Will, shaking his head says, "How can you be sure?" Looking down at his notes, "You stated he said it was about Nikki Heat. Maybe it was a meeting with someone else at Black Pawn." Looking back up at Alexis.

"No," releasing Kate and leaning over the table. "He was talking about Kate. I know he was talking about Kate."

Will looks at Kate, shaking his head. "It doesn't make sense. He tells Alexis he has a meeting with Nikki Heat and you both think he was talking about you."

"He was talking about Kate." Martha finally speaks up. "If he told Alexis he was meeting Nikki Heat, he was speaking about Kate." Looking at Kate nodding her head.

Kate turns back to Will, "I know that you don't understand this, but I do and if he told Alexis he was meeting with Nikki Heat, then he was indirectly talking about me. I'm not going to stand here arguing about this all day. Either way, we are still back to square freaking one. We still don't know who took him and why he was taken." Her voice raising with each word.

She can hear it in her own voice; the desperation, the helplessness. She has to get out of here, she needs to walk, clear her head. She doesn't make eye contact with anyone, moving past Alexis, Martha and the rest of her friends. She hears Alexis call out to her but she doesn't stop. "I need to walk." She calls out and grabs her purse at the door and walks out.

* * *

They have been watching the building, waiting patiently. They smile at each other, as they see her exit the building. There patience has finally paid off.


	13. Chapter 13

She had a desperate need to escape the loft. She turned right onto Fourth Avenue, stopped at Starbucks for a coffee and eventually found herself at Union Square Park. After walking down one of the paths, she found a secluded bench, to sit and clear her mind.

Taking a sip of her coffee, she thought about what Alexis had told Will about Castle's reference to Nikki Heat. He had driven back to the city early this morning to see her. Why? She hadn't spoken to him since he left that afternoon back in May with Gina. She was positive he didn't know that she had broken things off with Demming. She had told only Lanie. She was sure the boys had figured it out themselves. She was sure that none of them had told Castle, much less spoken to him since he left.

She was relieved earlier today, when Gina had told her that nothing happened between her and Castle the three days she was there. So relieved, that even now, it brought tears to her eyes. She wonders if Castle would be just as relieved to know that nothing had happened between her and Demming. Not that the man didn't try, it was Kate that always put the brakes on it. If she was honest with herself, she should never have dated him. He never had a chance, she knew that now, because Castle had her heart; he still did, he just didn't know it.

Taking another sip of her coffee, she checks her watch. She has to get back, she's been gone for over a hour. She has to go over the photos and the lab work; check thefootage on the DVD from the security cameras in the building. She needed to gain access to his laptop. They need to find him; she needs to find him, soon. Alexis needs her father and Martha needs her son. She needs him too.

Picking up her purse and getting up from the bench, she drops the coffee she barely drank into the trash can. She has a promise to keep, a promise she doesn't take lightly.

"_If something where to happen to me, I want you to watch out for Alexis; she looks up to you."_

She moves a little quicker along the path, exiting the park. She needs to get back to the loft, but she needs to make a quick stop along the way.

* * *

They watch her as she walks into the Starbucks. They wait, on the corner. To anyone walking by, they look like old friends, having a casual conversation. When she walks by them, she won't give them a second glance. She emerges, a tray of coffees in one hand, a bag of pastries in the other, purse over her shoulder. They follow ten paces behind, for several blocks, when she finally reaches the back alley to the building. She doesn't even hear them approach. A hand touches her shoulder, she turns her head, recognizing the person. "Hey, how did you …" she doesn't finish the sentence. She doesn't see the other person, the rag that covers her mouth, her world going black.

It would be almost a hour before someone would call her cell. It would take that long before one of her associates would find the tray of spilled coffees, the bag of pastries and her purse in the alley behind the building.

* * *

_He moves through her bedroom, finding the bed and slowly lowering them both. Before he realizes it, she has managed to roll them both over, straddling his body never breaking their kiss. _

_She touches his neck, running her hand down his chest, stopping at his nipple caressing it with her thumb. She feels, and hears, the groan deep within his chest. She continues to touch him, across his stomach, feeling his muscles twitch, past the waistband of his boxer briefs. He groans again, as she caresses the length of him._

_She feels the goosebumps again, as his hands move over her body. He hesitates, just for a second, as he slowly cups one breast in his hand, squeezing it gently feeling the nipple harden thru the material. She moans her appreciation into the kiss, just as he __gently releases her mouth. She opens her eyes, finding him grinning at her, "Do you know that red is my favorite color?"_

_Smiling, she kisses him quickly on his mouth, "Is it now?"_

"_Yes. It became my favorite color the minute I took your slip off," pulling her back down to his waiting mouth. Distracting her, he manages to unhook her bra, remove it, flip them over and place both of her hands in one of his over her head. He releases her mouth, grinning at her again. "Surprised?"_

"_Yes", she says softly. She moves her legs, so they flank the sides of his waist. Tilting her hips just enough, so the hard length of him is against the center of her heat; silk and cotton separating them._

_Groaning, his mouth explores her neck and shoulder and finally reaching her breast, his mouth closing on her hardened nipple. She closes her eyes, feeling her other nipple hardened on it's own, in anticipation of his mouth. She arches her back and whispers, "Please Rick … I want you now." _

Dusk has fallen on the city. Castle, still dreaming of Kate, has no idea that he will soon have someone to keep him company.


	14. Chapter 14

She reaches the next block when she feels a hand touching her shoulder, she turns her head, recognizing the person, "Hey, how did you …." she doesn't finish the sentence. "What's wrong? Is it Castle? Alexis?"

Lanie shakes her head, "No. You were gone for a while and when you didn't answer your cell, we got concerned. Knowing you like I do, I decided to take a chance that you needed your caffeine fix." She looks at the coffee tray and bag in Kate's hands, "And, I guess I was right."

"I'm sorry Lanie. I just needed to walk to clear my head. I guess the time got away from me."

Nodding her head, she reaches for the bag in Kate's hand, while taking out her cell. "I found her. Yes …. coffee. Yes, I believe I said that … Okay, we'll see you in a few."

"Okay Lanie," Kate finally says, "What's going on?"

Lanie looks over at her friend, before answering, "Everyone is already on edge with Castle's disappearance. Most of us understand Beckett and we know you needed to walk to clear your head. But, Alexis, she only knows Kate."

Kate nods her head, understanding Lanie. "I'll talk to her." Taking a few steps she continues, "Have you been able to look over the lab results?"

They enter Castle's building as Lanie answers, "Nothing significant. The blood belongs to Castle. The prints we dusted for this morning belong to Castle, Alexis, Martha and you."

Kate nods, she had a feeling they weren't going to find anything worth while. "Let's hope we get something from the security footage."

They walk past the officers posted on Castle's floor and into the loft. A few pizza boxes and a large box of Chinese take out line the counters. Esposito and Ryan are at the couch, lap top open, eating and watching the security footage. Will, Carter and Martha are at the dining room table. Working through the list of business associates. Leaving her purse and coffee tray on the counter, she walks over to Martha.

Martha looks up as she approaches and asks, "You okay, kiddo?"

"Yes. I'm sorry I walked out earlier. I needed to clear my head." as she reaches out taking Martha's hand. "Where's Alexis?"

"She's in Richard's study, sitting." looking concerned. "I couldn't get her to eat and she won't go upstairs and rest. May be she'll listen to you."

Kate squeezes her hand before releasing it. "I'll talk to her." Turning her attention to Will, she asks, "Have you found anything?"

"No. Only two left on the list and I think they will be a dead end too. I was able to reach Castle's first wife, Meredith. She hasn't spoken to him in over two months. So, we have another dead end. I know the lab report was a bust." Looking over at Esposito and Ryan he asks, "How about the security footage?"

"The boys are checking it now. Hopefully, we will find something that will give us a lead."

Nodding he looks at her and stands up, "Can I have a word with you?"

She turns to Martha, "Excuse me for a minute."

She walks over to the kitchen island, where Will is waiting for her. "Kate, I don't have to tell you how this is all starting to look. We have no leads, the business associates are turning out to be a bust and we've had no calls for any ransom."

Looking over at Martha, talking with Agent Carter, she nods her head. "I know exactly how this all looks, but I'm not giving up on him Will."

Keeping his voice low, he says, "Kate, do I have to remind you again about keeping your emotions out of this case. You're too involved and despite your need to walk earlier, your emotions are still running on the surface."

Crossing her arms, she answers, "I can handle this despite what you think. I'm not giving up, because if this was me, Castle wouldn't give up. No matter how slim the leads where, he would find a way. Need I remind you, this isn't just about Castle, I have his daughter and mother to consider too."

Watching her, he nods. "Okay. Then we keep looking. Hopefully, we find something soon." He opens his mouth to say something and deciding against it, turns and heads back over to the table.

Reaching for one of the cups from Starbucks and the pastry bag, she turns and heads into Castle's study. Walking in, she sees Alexis sitting in one of the oversized leather chairs facing Castle's desk. Placing the cup and the bag on the desk she turns, leaning against the desk, looking at Alexis.

She notices that Alexis has changed into black yoga pants and a NYPD t-shirt. She smiles when she sees the t-shirt, knowing Castle confiscated it some how. She's holding Monkey Bunkey, looking at the windows in the alcove. She wipes the tears from her face and with out looking at Kate, whispers "You left."

Moving off the desk she moves to the chair, sitting next to Alexis and reaching out for her hand. "I know and I'm sorry. I needed to walk, to clear my head a little."

She turns in the chair, looking at Kate, nodding her head. "That's what Dr. Parish said. But, you left and I got scared. I was scared you gave up on dad."

Squeezing her hand Kate says softly, "I would never give up on your father. Plus, Esposito and Ryan where here, along with Will and Agent Carter. They're still looking for him too."

"I know," she answers, "But, you're different. You care like Gram and I do." Putting her head on Kate's shoulder.

She leans her head against Alexis' and whispers, "Yes, I do."

* * *

He doesn't hear them unlock the door and bring her into the room. They bind her too, with duct tape, and place her in another chair, next to Castle.


	15. Chapter 15

Kate, passed the cup with the last of the hot chocolate back to Alexis, as the teen passed the last piece of the bear claw back to Kate. Finishing, they both lean against one another, Alexis reaching for Kate's hand. "Kate, if I don't remember to thank you later, I want to thank you now."

Looking at Alexis and squeezing her hand, "For what?"

"For saving my dad and bringing him home safely." Alexis answers, as she puts her head on Kate's shoulder.

No pressure; no pressure at all, Kate thinks to herself. Looking over at the lap top on Castle's desk, she says, "Alexis, I need your help with something. Your dad's lap top, I need the password."

Alexis gets up from the chair and sits down in Castle's chair. Pushing the power button, waiting for the log on screen. She looks at the lap top, noticing the key board, lowering the lid slightly. Shaking her head, she looks back at Kate. "I don't have the password for this lap top. This is his Nikki Heat lap top, not his everyday lap top."

Kate, getting out up to stand next to Alexis, says "His Nikki Heat lap top?"

Looking up at Kate, she nods her head, "Yeah. Dad has two lap tops. One he uses for everyday stuff. Checking his bank account, paying bills, placing bets at Belmont, on- line poker, You Tube, Facebook …..you get the picture. He uses another lap top, just for writing his novels, doing research for them; it's this one. Gram might now the password. I'll go get her."

Alexis gets up and leaves, just as Lanie walks into the study. "How's it going?"

Kate looks up at Lanie, "She's good. I needed to be reminded earlier, thanks. We're trying to find the password for this lap top. Apparently, this is his Nikki Heat lap top."

Lanie raises her eyebrow, "Really …? I can't wait to see what he has loaded on that bad boy."

Kate, rolling her eyes answers, "He uses a separate lap top for his novels. Alexis said she doesn't know the password. She went to find Martha."

As if on queue, Martha follows Alexis back into the room. "Darling, Alexis said you needed my help?" Standing next to Kate, behind the desk. Esposito and Ryan follow and both sit in the chairs facing Castle's desk. Kate looks at them both, raising her eyebrow.

"Hey. We heard Nikki Heat lap top and figured you could use our help." Ryan answers. Esposito nods in agreement, as Lanie sits down on the arm of his chair.

Shaking her head she looks at Martha. "I hope you can. Do you have any idea what Castle's password is for this lap top? Alexis said it wasn't his everyday lap top."

Looking at the lap top she answers, "She's right. It is the lap top he uses to write Nikki Heat. He did the same thing with his Derrek Storm series. But, he never shared the password with Alexis or myself. I don't know the password for this one either. Sorry dear." Kate, nodding her head, turns back to the lap top, staring at the blinking cursor.

Alexis, who is standing on the other side of Kate says, "I remember dad saying before that his password for the Derrek Storm laptop was something in reference to the character. May be it's the same thing for Nikki Heat."

Placing her fingers on the key board she types "_Nikki" _and receives a "beep" as the response. She tries several others, getting a "beep" in response to all of them. Alexis, Martha and the others all call out different words, all receiving the all to familiar "beep." Frustrated, Kate sits back in the chair.

Ryan, looking at Kate, leans forward in his chair. "May be it's not a Nikki Heat reference. May be it's a reference to something Kate Beckett." Everyone looks at her.

Nodding her head, she places her fingers back on the key board and types "_detective"_ and receives a "beep". "Oh come on …." frustration clearly in her voice. Again typing several different words and again the all to familiar "beep."

She gets up from the chair and starts pacing. Martha sits down and types in a few words, again getting that all too familiar "beep". Stepping over into the alcove area, she looks at the picture frames lining the book shelves. She picks up a picture from the Halloween party he invited them all too. She remembered it was right after they had found the murderer of Crow and his mother. She thought about the whole case. As she put the photo down she had a flash of a moment they had in the break room.

"_You smell like cherries"_

She turns and looking at Martha says quietly, "Cherries." Martha nods her head, types, and Kate hears the familiar noises of the lap top opening it's desktop page.

All eyes are on her, each wondering about the "cherries" reference, but no one asks her. Martha gets up from the chair, as she walks back to the desk and sits back down.


	16. Chapter 16

Kate checked his web browser history and emails, but nothing jumped out at her. She saw the folder marked "Nikki" and was almost tempted, but resisted, she respected him and the author he was, too much.

"Well, I was hoping we would find something," Kate says. Looking at the boys, "Please tell me you found something on the security footage."

Esposito leans forward in his chair, "Not much. The usual neighbors, maintenance, deliveries and security. But, we have only watched 4 hours of 48 hours of footage. It's going to be a long night."

"Okay. Well, after I look over the lab report, I'll help with the footage." She starts to get up, but notices an icon on his HP Media file, and sits back down. Martha, watching Kate, and sensing she found something, touches Kate's arm.

"Alexis, honey. Can you put on a pot of coffee? And show Dr. Parish how to use the espresso machine. She's was interested in an espresso earlier and I couldn't show her at the time."

"Sure, Gram." she turns, walking out of the study, not waiting for Lanie. Kate immediately clicks on the file.

Lanie looks at Martha, but Kate answers her, "Please keep her busy out there. I think I might have found something." Nodding her head, Lanie walks out.

"Kate ….?" Martha says, sounding concerned. Ryan and Esposito move next to Kate.

"I saw something on the HP Media file, indicating there was a recorded video." Kate answers. Another few clicks and a video pops up. Another click from her and the recording starts to play.

_Castle, with his back to the lap top, slowly puts his hands up. "Okay … okay. What do you want? I have money … I'll give you money. There's no need for anyone to get hurt here."_

_A large man, dressed all in black, steps closer to Castle; knife in his hand. "Then you will cooperate and you won't get hurt. You won't have to worry about your three favorite women getting hurt either."_

"_What do you mean, I won't have to hurt my three favorite women?"_

_Your daughter, Alexis, is at the summer program at Princeton. Your mother, Martha Rodgers, is doing summer stock in Williamstown, Mass. And last but not least, your beautiful detective, Kate Beckett, well she's still here in Manhattan. Either at the 12th precinct, working late, or at her new apartment on Christopher Street."_

"_No ..." yells Castle as he tackles the larger man down to the floor. They struggle, the larger man, clearly besting Castle. The larger man, puts the knife up to Castle throat, pulling him to his feet. _

"_Enough." the larger man yells, but Castle continues to struggle, throwing a punch, and making contact. The man stumbles back, recovering quickly and steps forward quickly. Castle has no time to deflect and the blade of the knife, nicks into Castle's skin, just below his jaw. Castle's yelps, and his hand immediately reaches for the cut. Blood seeping thru his fingers; trailing down his hand._

_A smaller figure appears from the door, a ball cap placed low on the head, "Mr. Castle. Fighting isn't going to make this any easier for you. Keep fighting, your family will find a dead body and the police, will be missing a female detective. The choice is yours."_

"_No … I'll go quietly. You have my word." _

"_That's what I thought." The smaller figure turns, heading towards the door. Castle and the larger man following._

The video, after a few seconds, stops playing, fading to a black screen. The four viewers are silent, each lost in their own thoughts. Esposito and Ryan, looking at each other are pumped. They finally have a lead, a solid lead. Kate, moving out of Castle's chair quickly, walks to the windows in the alcove area.

"Beckett, we need to show this to Will. May be the FBI can run them through facial recognition. Chances are they have a criminal record." Esposito says. He takes a step forward, but stops, when he feels a hand on his arm. Martha, gives his arm a squeeze, and nodding, he and Ryan leave the room quietly.

Kate, looking out the window, hadn't realized it had been raining. She watches a bead of water, slowly track down the window pane. As she watches it, she can feel a single tear, slowly falling against her cheek. She reaches up, wiping at the tear, as Martha walks up next to her. They stand silently together, each lost in her own thoughts.

Martha, steals a quick glance at Kate and reaches for her hand, before turning her attention back to the rain falling against the windows. She knew the video affected Kate as much as it affected herself. "I know you think, in some small way, this is your fault. If he hadn't come back to the city, to see you, this would never have happened. You had no way of knowing he had returned to the city. You didn't know this would happen; none of us did."

Kate, turns to Martha and whispers, "What if I let him down?" As she brushes away another tear.

Martha, pulling Kate into her arms states, "You won't. Richard knows you are doing everything you can to find him and you're taking care of Alexis and I."

"Thank you Martha," Kate answers as she pulls back from Martha. "I know this isn't my place to make this decision, but I don't think Alexis should see that video."

"I agree, she's already upset and the video will only upset her more."

"I'm going to talk to Will, let him know about the video. They can run the facial recognition and I hope we get a hit. It's a good lead, the best we have, so far."

She gives Martha a quick hug and exits the room.

Martha, turns back to the windows, watching the rain. Finally, allowing the tears to fill in her eyes, she whispers, "Oh Richard … she needs your help."


	17. Chapter 17

Kate walked out of the study and checked on Esposito and Ryan's progress with the security footage. "Anything?"

Ryan answers, "No, not yet, but we are hopeful. We were thinking that maybe the two suspects staked out Castle's building for a few days. We should print off the photos of the two suspects. Show them to the doormen, security and maintenance, someone may have noticed them."

"Great idea. Pull some stills from the video off the laptop and print them off. You and Esposito can start canvasing again. I'm going to talk with Will, let him know about the video and I'll start going through the security footage."

"You got it", as Ryan gets up and moves into the study.

Looking at Esposito briefly, Kate turns her attention towards the kitchen, watching Alexis show Lanie how to use the espresso machine. She catches a glimpse of Castle, the way Alexis' cocks her head, listening to Lanie as she asks a question, and the smile that Lanie receives, when Lanie follows Alexis' direction perfectly. She has seen the similarities before, but today, they squeeze her heart.

Standing next to her, Esposito says, "I see Castle in Alexis as well." reading Kate's thoughts. She nods her head. "You going to talk to her about the video?" he whispers to her.

She turns back to Esposito, "Talk to her about it, yes. Let her watch it, no. I've already discussed it with Martha and she agreed it wouldn't be a good idea for her to see it."

Ryan returns from the study, copies of the suspects in hand, and walks over to Esposito and says, "Ready?" They both nod to Kate and they walk out of the loft.

Kate, looking over at Will and Agent Carter at the table, walks over and sits across from Will. He doesn't look up, "Well, that was the last of my return calls and we have nothing on any of Castle's business associates. We have no new leads and the suspect list is non-existent." He finally looks up at her and says, "You found something."

"Yes, a video that Castle was able to record from his laptop." She proceeds to explain to him what they saw, even giving a brief description of the two men who walked out with Castle. "Ryan and Esposito just took some still copies and are showing them to the doorman, security and maintenance. I was hoping that you could use the FBI's facial recognition software; may be something will turn up. It's the best lead we have so far." Just then Will's cell phone rings. Not paying attention to Will, Kate looks over at Alexis and Lanie, who are laughing as the foamed milk splashes back at them from the container. She smiles, it's the first time she's heard Alexis laugh all day.

"Kate, I just got a call on another case and I've been requested to go to the crime scene. Carter will stay here with you. Send the video to him, he can start running the software against the suspects. I'll call you when I know something." he says to her, as he heads out the door.

She looks at Carter, "What was that all about?"

Not giving anything away, Carter responds, "I'm not sure. Is the video still loaded on Mr. Castle's laptop? I can send it to my laptop and start the process." Kate nods, and he heads towards the study.

As she gets up from the chair, she feels a chill again, running through her body and settling on the back of her neck, just like earlier today. Looking at the door that Will just exited, she tries to ignore the chill on her neck.

She reaches the couch and sits down in front of one of the laptops. Martha comes out of the study and joins Kate on the couch. "Agent Carter is pulling the video. I asked him to shut it down when he was finished. You know the password and I didn't want it left open for Alexis to stumble across the video." She looks over at Alexis and Lanie, "Have you talked to her yet?"

Kate, not looking up from the video, "No. She's occupied with Lanie at the moment and they are having a good time. I know when I tell her about the video, the little bit of fun she's having right now will be over. I'm not ready to crush that for her just yet." Kate looks over at Alexis and Lanie, then back to Martha.

Martha, reaching for Kate's hand, whispers, "You're a good woman, Kate Beckett."

Just then Alexis and Lanie come over to the couch, handing an espresso to Kate and Martha. They settle on the other side of the leather sectional. Lanie with her own espresso and Alexis eating a slice of pizza.

Moving closer to Kate, Alexis looks over at the security footage and says, "Is there anything I can help with, Kate." Watching the screen as the doorman, helps the residence of the building with packages, hailing cabs and opening doors.

"No, honey. There's really not too much you can help with right now." smiling at her as she takes a sip of her espresso. Just then Agent Carter walks out of the study.

Alexis looks up at him, "I left an espresso on the counter for you, Agent Carter."

Smiling at her, he answers, "Thank you." turning to Kate he says, "I forwarded the video and upload it to the software. It may take awhile, but hopefully, we'll get a hit on the two suspects that walked out with Mr. Castle." He walks over to the counter for his espresso and then sits back down at the dinning room table.

Kate nods, as she locks eyes with Alexis, who has put the slice of pizza back on the plate. As she places the plate on the coffee table, she moves away from Kate. She looks at Kate, tears in her eyes, and whispers, "What video? I want to see it, now." Kate reaches for her hand, but Alexis pulls away from her, "Now, Detective."

Alexis gets up from the couch and walks to the study doorway, turning, arms crossed, waiting for Kate to join her. Martha, turns to Alexis from the couch, "Alexis ….." but doesn't finish. Kate has already stood up, walking past Martha, her hand resting briefly on Martha's shoulder, her eyes locked on the steady gaze of the teen. "Let me, Martha."

Alexis walks into the study, facing Castle's desk, looking at the picture on the wall. To say she is angry is an understatement. But, more then anything, she's disappointed in herself and most importantly, Beckett. She thought Beckett would treat her like an adult and not just some kid who couldn't handle anything. At least that's how things were between them before. She of all people should understand the need to be treated like an adult when it comes to family matters.

Kate walks in, and speaks softly, "Alexis, I'm really sorry you found out about the video this way. I had every intention of telling you about it."

Alexis turns, anger clearly showing in her eyes, "When Detective? When there is no hope of finding him or when we do find him, but it was too late? I had a right to know about this and you kept it from me. I'm not a little kid that needs to be coddled all the time. I have seen more then you think I have and deserved to be treated like an adult." Her voice elevating with each word; no longer able to hold back her emotions.

Kate, steps forward, her gaze steady on Alexis, "You are right and I'm not going to tell you otherwise. You can yell at me all you want, but not showing you the video was the right choice and I'm not going to apologize for it. What I am sorry for is not telling you right away about the video. I just wanted to give a you a little time to relax. When I heard you laugh with Lanie, I couldn't take that time away from you. You needed that time to regroup. Hell, we all need that time. This is tough for everyone."

"What is so bad in that video, that you don't want me to see it?" her voice quieter, softer, "I can handle whatever is on there. You have to trust my judgment on this, Kate."

"It's not that the video is bad, per se, Alexis. I'm hoping we'll get some good leads off of it. Your dad helped himself, and us, by managing to record it, but there are some things on it that you don't need to see. No child, no matter how old, needs to see their parent in this situation or any situation like this and if I can prevent it, I will. It scars you for life, at least it did for me and I'm not going to let that happen to you. I made a promise to your dad, not to long ago, and I plan on keeping that promise. I do trust your judgment, but now, I'm asking you to trust mine. Please Alexis." Kate said looking directly in to the teens eyes.

Taking a deep breath, she thinks about what Kate just said to her. "Okay. I do trust your judgment and I won't push about seeing the video. I only ask that you treat me like an adult. I need to know what's going on and feel like I'm taking an active part in helping you save my dad. He's family and families stick together; this includes you too, Kate. You are as much my family as Gram and Dad." Putting her arms around Kate.

"Thank you for including me in your family." she whispers to Alexis, her arms tightening around the teen. She releases Alexis, but grabs her hand, "Let's go check to see how Agent Carter and the boys are doing so far."


	18. Chapter 18

Martha is puttering around in the kitchen, putting food in storage containers and trying to keep herself busy. She pours a glass of white wine, and watches as Kate and Alexis walk back out from the study, hands clasped. Kate heads over to the couch, settling next to Lanie, who had already started watching the security footage. Alexis picks up her plate from the coffee table and heads into the kitchen, placing it in the dish washer. Avoiding Martha's gaze, she turns back to the fridge and reaches inside for a bottled water. Sighing, she looks at her grand mother.

Martha steps closer to her and whispers, "Darling … I know that you are worried about your father, we all are. You were a little too rough on Kate earlier. Kate and I made the decision together about you not seeing the video. No matter how old you think you are, you are still a teenager and she's only trying to protect you. Kate is not trying to keep things from you."

Taking a sip of water, she whispers back. "I know Gram." She hesitates for a few seconds, "I know that Kate is working hard to find dad. I also know I shouldn't have taken my fears out on her. I'm just so scared that something bad will happen to him and my family. I just hope Kate knows I don't blame her. I do trust her judgment on this and I will apologize to her. Something I should have done when we talked earlier." Leaning against Martha, she continues, "Gram, you know Dad loves her right...?" Alexis says softly as they both stand there watching Kate work for a moment.

Placing her glass on the counter, Martha looks at Alexis with a small smile and says "Your father has been in love with Kate for quite sometime now. She's different then your mother and Gina; she's even different than Kyra." She pauses for a second before continuing "I guess you really are more like an adult then we sometimes give you credit for."

Alexis nods, "If I had to guess, I would say Dad has meet his match and I think he knows it. I also think she's exactly what Dad needs." Alexis turns, opens the fridge and takes out two bottles of water. Heading over to the couch, she hands one to both Lanie and Kate.

Martha watches her grand daughter, unsure if she should sit down or move away. Kate, not taking her eyes off the screen, reaches out her hand, pulling Alexis down next to her. As she watches, Alexis leans against Kate, watching the video with her. Taking another sip of her wine, Martha knows, that Kate, is exactly what Alexis needs too.

* * *

Will steps from the non-discript government car, moving past the other FBI agents and walks up to the agent in charge, Agent Stevens. "What do we have here, Chris?"

Chris nods at Will, "Well, it appears that one of the assistant attorneys from the Justice Department was abducted earlier today. We found her purse and cell phone. We also found some tire tracks near her purse. It's being analyzed at the lab right now. From the size and width, my guess, the tires will be consistent with the size usually found on a cargo van. The video camera coverage on this side of the building, is limited. So, the coverage on the alley doesn't reach this area." Chris's cell phone rings and he takes a few steps away.

Will looks down at the scattered coffee cups, Starbucks, littered on the ground. They were being processed along with the other items found at the scene. He had a feeling that they wouldn't get much evidence from the items being bagged. It was standard procedure though and sometimes you got lucky.

Chris hangs up and walks back to Will, "I know that you are currently working on an abduction case, but I'm going to need your assistance for a few hours on this one. You and some of the other agents have worked recent cases with her. I'm hoping you and the others will be able to help us compile a list of possible suspects."

"Let me just check in with the agent I left at the other location and I'll meet you at her office." Will pulls out his cell, as he heads back to his car.

* * *

Esposito and Ryan had shown the photos of the two suspects to the building staff working the night shift. No one had recalled seeing either around the building during their shifts. They were just returning to the loft, stepping off the elevator, when they overheard Agent Carter talking on his cell. "Okay ... well, what do you want me to tell her ... Okay, I can do that ... Who was it? ...Oh ... keep me posted." He hangs up, looking up as the two detectives approach him.

"What's going on Carter?" Ryan asks as they stop in front of him.

Looking down at his cell and then back at the two detectives, "That was Will. He got called to another investigation and he was checking in this one." Tossing his head towards the photos that Esposito was holding, he asks, "Any luck?" Esposito shakes his head, and the three walk into Castle's loft.

Carter walks up to Kate, who is viewing the security footage on one of the laptops. "Beckett."

Pausing the video, she looks up at Carter, "Yes?"

"I just got off the phone with Will. He's going to be working on the other investigation for a while, but he'll be checking in on our progress. The facial recognition is still running, it has only scanned about ten percent of the files so it's going to take a while." Kate nods and Carter heads back over to the dinning room table. He didn't feel it was necessary to give Beckett all the details of where Will was or whom the other investigation was about. After all, she and the others were _just _NYPD detectives.

Kate, leaning forward with her elbows on her legs, looks over at Esposito and Ryan as they sat down on the other side of the leather sectional. "Did you get anything?" Both detectives shook there heads. Placing her head in hand, and closing her eyes, she whispers, "Great, just great." Running her hand through her hair, she opens her eyes and clicks on the play button. Lanie catches Esposito's eye and with a toss of her head, the two make there way over to the kitchen.

Facing away from the living room area, and pouring two cups of coffee, Lanie looks at Esposito. "She needs to get some rest. She's hardly eaten anything, drinking just coffee and she's had no break. Plus, because this is about Castle, she's also taking care of Martha and Alexis. Martha couldn't get Alexis up to bed earlier, until Kate promised she would wake her if there was any new developments. She's going to burn herself out." Lanie turns back around, sipping her coffee, and watching Kate.

Espositio takes a moment to look at Lanie before responding " I got ya. Ryan and I will keep working on the footage and keep an eye on everything for you. Why don't you suggest she get some rest. It will come better from you as her best friend and safer, then it coming from either Ryan or myself."

He turns back to pour another cup of coffee for Ryan and notices Lanie was watching him. "Are you okay, Lanie?"

Keeping her voice low she asks quietly, "Javier, do you think we'll find Castle?"

Stepping closer to her, he answers, "Yes, I do. Castle's recording of the abduction is a great lead. The FBI are running the facial recognition software. Plus, and most importantly, Castle has the best detective in NY looking for him." Picking up two coffee cups, he leans against Lanie and whispers, "Try to get her to rest, and get some yourself."

"Kate," Lanie calls out to her friend, "Can I talk to you for a minute?"

Kate nods, clicking the pause button and making her way over to Lanie. "What's up?"

"Honey, you need to take a break. Go lay down for a while in Castle's room and try to sleep. You know the boys will come get you if anything turns up." Kate is shaking her head, but Lanie continues, placing her hand on Kate's arm, "You aren't going to be able to keep this pace up much longer. You had no problem convincing Martha and Alexis that they needed to rest. Take your own advice, please Kate."

Kate answers, "I need to check on the facial recognitions progress with Carter." She starts to move away, but Lanie doesn't let go of Kate's arm.

"Esposito and Ryan can check with him. And, you know, they will come get you if something turns up." Lanie said facing Kate raising her eyebrow.

"I need to check on Alexis and Martha." Kate comes back with but makes no effort to move. .

"I'm heading up to the guest room to get some rest myself. I'll check on both of them for you." Squeezing Kate's arm, "Please honey, I'm asking as your best friend, get some sleep."


	19. Chapter 19

_She's running. Calling his name. Looking for him. She can hear the sound of her heels hitting the pavement...hard. As each block passes she runs faster and faster, calling out to him; her voice getting louder and louder. Her body is screaming for her to stop but she won't. Thoughts of him driving her legs to push harder. To move faster. The voice in her heart begging her to find him; before it's too late for them._

_The hour is early in the city. Her mind barely registering that there is no traffic. No buses, cabs or private cars picking up or dropping off. No pedestrian traffic stopping for coffee and the Ledger. No merchants opening their doors for the days shoppers. It's eerie but she doesn't care about that now. Her focus is only on one thing; one man._

_Finally, with her legs and lungs no longer able to take the abuse, she stops. Sensing his presence, she looks up and sees him walking towards her. He calls out to her, a smile spreading across his face. She runs towards him, her smile just as big as his. He stops and calls her name again, asking her to find him before it's too late. As she approaches, he fades away. She turns, circling, calling out to him. Finally, screaming his name "Castle ... Castle ... Rick ... RICK!" _

She sits up in bed breathing heavily. She can feel the dampness from the tears on her face. As she looks over at the bed side clock she sees she has only been asleep for about three hours. Falling back down against the pillows, she closes her eyes and repeats it was just a dream ...just a dream. In her mind it felt very real, too real. Her eyes still closed, she places her hand over her heart trying to will it to return to it's normal beats, but it won't. It's close to approaching 24 hours since he's been gone and on any other case she would have started to lose hope. She can't on this case because this case is different. He's different. It's all different and she refuses to lose hope.

She rolls onto her side reaching out for the other pillow hugging it against her. It's his pillow; she can smell his cologne and her throat tightens. Maybe Will is right? Maybe she is taking this all too personally. It's possible she is being too emotional. How can she not feel all those things? It feels different, because it is different. She can't just lay here anymore. She can sleep later when he is home safe. Right now what she needs is a shower and coffee. Throwing back the covers and getting out of bed, she stretches and heads into the bathroom.

* * *

Will and the others have been gathered around the conference room table for hours now and are no further ahead than before. They had all gone back through cases, six months worth that were worked with the assistant attorney. Every single criminal, convicted and put behind bars, was accounted for. All still serving time. The only information that came out of the evidence from the alley was the size of the tires from the vehicle. Just like Agent Stevens had predicted, the tires are commonly used for on a cargo van and of no real help on this case.

"Well, not much more we can do here. The lab is working on enhancing the surveillance footage in the alley. I'm hopeful they will find something, anything at this point." Agent Stevens says she takes a sip of her coffee. Looking up she continues, "I'm sure that you want to get back to your other case. I appreciate you taking the time to help out on this one. I'll keep you posted on any developments."

"Thanks Chris." Getting up and leaving the conference room, Will pulls his cell phone from his jacket pocket.

* * *

Kate had finally lost the battle that she had been fighting all day in Castle's shower of all places. She had finally given into the tears that she had been holding back since the start of everything. It was in his shower where she found the privacy she needs to fully let go of her fears and emotions. Here she could finally admit she was scared but it was also here where she could feel his presence, his strength. It was here she knew she would find him.

* * *

Finally showered and dressed, Kate makes her way back out to the living room and surveys the room. Esposito is still watching the security footage; looking up he checks his watch, shaking his head and continues to watch the footage. Kate looks at Ryan with his head back against the couch appearing to be taking a nap. Agent Carter has been replaced at the dinning room table with a new face that Kate doesn't recognize and doesn't care to know right now. Walking into the kitchen, she pours herself a cup of coffee. She returns to the living room area, sitting down next to Esposito.

"How's it going?" Taking a sip of the coffee, not her usual morning coffee but for now it will have to do.

"It's going, but slowly. We haven't found anyone on the footage that resembles the two suspects." Pausing he takes a sip of his own coffee and looks over at her, "Carter left a few hours ago. Agent Martin taking his place. Software still running but only thirty percent of the files compared. It's going to take awhile." Esposito said with a hint of fatigue showing through.

Looking at him, Kate suggests "Why don't you try to get some sleep? I can run through the footage for a while."

"I already took my nap." Esposition said tossing his head towards Ryan, "He feel asleep about 20 minutes ago."

It's at that moment they hear the loud thud and a scream from the floor above. Kate is off the couch and taking the stairs two at a time. Esposito's steps not far behind her. They both reach Alexis' room at the same time as Martha and Lanie. Kate, slows briefly allowing Martha to enter before her leaving Lanie and Esposito standing in the doorway.

"Dad", Alexis screams. The sheets are twisted around her legs and she's pushing against something imaginary. "No ... Dad ... Dad!" She stops moving, "Kate! Help him, please help him." She lets out one finally cry and sitting up, she wakes up. "Dad ..."

Looking around her room, she allows here eyes to focus in on Martha and Kate. "Gram?" Martha moves next to Alexis on the bed hugging her grand daughter against her.

"It's okay, darling." Martha whispers looking over the top of Alexis head and directly at Kate.

Alexis wiping the tears from her face, looks at Kate, "I saw him, Kate. He's duct taped to a chair. He's bleeding and not awake." Moving off the bed and away from Martha, she stands in front of Kate. "You have to find him Kate."

Kate puts her arms around Alexis, looking at Martha and repeats, "I will sweetie. I will."


	20. Chapter 20

The predawn light slowly stretched across the city. A cool breeze following the light across the city like a shadow. Sipping her coffee and looking down at the watch on her wrist, she sighs heavily. "Where are you Castle?" she whispers. Turning she moves away from the windows and stops in front of his desk.

She picks up a framed photo of Castle and Alexis and looks at the image of the man staring back at her causing her to smile. This is the man she has come to know so very well. A loving son and father who would do anything for his mother and daughter. A caring friend who would do anything for her; who had proven that on more than one occasion. The man that would move heaven and earth for all three of them. This was the real man and not the public image who previously graced Page Six of The Ledger at least twice weekly.

He blew that image out of the water for her within months of their partnership. She resisted him in the beginning denying to herself and anyone else their unique method of crime solving and the mutual attraction. Two years later she now admits how well they worked together despite the fact that on occasion she still tries to fight the mutual attraction between them. She didn't want to fight it anymore; she wanted to give into it. With a smile tugging at the corner of her mouth, she puts the photo back down on the desk.

Turning she walks out of his study and into the living room. Esposito and Ryan are back in front of the laptops again watching the security footage. She sees Will, who had returned while she was in Castle's study, speaking with Agent Martin. Walking into the kitchen area, Kate reaches for the fresh pot of coffee while the sound of someone descending the stairs has her turning her head. She watches as Martha approaches the kitchen the concern evident on her face. Despite looking freshly showered and dressed, Kate can still see what she tries to hide to those around her.

"Martha, you really should try to get some sleep." she says as Martha pours herself a cup of coffee.

"Darling, I can catch up on all my sleep when you bring my boy home safely." Placing her hand on Kate's she continues, "Until then, I have my grand daughter and you to look after. I also have a couple of hungry detectives to feed." her gaze moving to Esposito and Ryan. Patting Kate's hand she steps over to the fridge pulling out eggs, bacon and bread.

Seeing Martha start to make breakfast, Kate moves away and walks over to Will and the agent at the dining room table.

Will looks up as she approaches, "Have you slept at all Kate?"

She shrugs, "Enough."

Turning her attention to Agent Martin she asks, "I'm assuming that there are no hits yet?"

"No detective, not yet. We are only through sixty percent of the files. I'm sure we'll get a hit on it soon." Picking up his coffee cup, he moves away from Will and Kate.

Kate turns her attention back to Will and says, "You don't look like you've slept either. Have you been working on your other case all night?"

Yawning behind his hand Will replies, "Yep. Dead end on that case too. I may have to leave again, if I'm called back."

Nodding, she asks, "What's the case?"

"Kate you know I can't discuss a federal case with you. Especially a case of this nature."

Kate clearly annoyed but choosing to back off for now, says "You seem troubled is all. I was just asking as a concerned friend. I won't make that mistake again." She walks back over to the couch, sitting in front of the third laptop.

Will starts to take a step towards the couch when Agent Martin walks up to him with a cup of coffee. Accepting the gift of the much needed caffeine fix, he turns back to the laptop on the table. He takes a sip of the coffee and watches the scan when the laptop beeps and the word "MATCH" pops up on the screen. He looks at the side by side photos, one taken from the footage Castle was able to record, the other from a federal arrest. As he looks at the name on the screen, he can see her getting up from the couch. He scans the page for the status of the suspect. He closes his eyes at what he sees; ESCAPED.

He opens his eyes to see her standing with her hands on the back of a chair at the head of the table. She is gripping the edge so tightly her knuckles are white. Seeing Kate move, Esposito and Ryan join her on the other side of the table while Martha stands close by all eyes on Kate.

"Will...?" Kate says as she looks up at him.

"We have a match." He hesitates for a brief moment before saying "It's Carla "Cold Blood" Dante."


	21. Chapter 21

The dawn light slowly moves the shadows across the room brightening it. The woman in the chair hadn't moved since she had been placed in it hours ago. The movements from the man next to her were caused by his dream of a certain woman, a certain detective.

_Richard Castle looks down at the woman laying over him sleeping. He idly toys with a lock of her hair watching it curl around his finger. Slowly he moves his fingertips along her arm until he reaches the hand that lays on top of his chest, over his heart. He picks it up placing a kiss against her palm and places it back on his chest, his hand covering hers. Murmuring his name, she stirs slightly and he can feel her breath against his neck. _

_When he thinks back on the events of the last six months he realizes that the shift in their relationship occurred between the Coonan shooting and the Scott Dunn case. Both saving the other from the possibility of death and acting like it was a normal, everyday occurrence. For him the decisions he made to save her, twice, in a matter of days had been easy. Running into her burning apartment and shooting at a man who was killing in the name of Nikki Heat had been easy for him. He didn't hesitate, he didn't stop to think about the consequences of his decisions or how it would effect Alexis and his mother if it turned out badly. He doesn't want to imagine what his life would be like without her and he closes his eyes against the thought, pulling her against him. _

"_Rick?" she whispers her brow furrowing as she looks up at him "What's wrong?"_

"_Nothing." he murmurs pulling her back down onto his chest, "Go back to sleep."_

_Listening to the steady beat of his heart she traces patterns on his chest with her finger and whispers, "Say it." _

_Placing his finger under her chin, he tilts her head back until she is looking at him "I __love you, Kate." _

_With a seductive smile spreading across her lips she whispers "Show me" moving over him until her mouth finds his. _

_Groaning out loud he rolls her over onto her back and shows her just how much. Again._

He turns his head and he groans out loud, "Kate.." Waking up slowly he tries to focus in on his surroundings. Ah yes, the Waldorf. Slowly, he looks over at the occupant in the chair next to him and realizes it's a woman. At first glance the woman is similar in her appearance to Kate but he knows, without seeing her face that she's not Kate. He watches as her chest rises and falls and breaths a sign of relief. Whomever she is, at least she still alive.

Looking up at the sky light, he knows dawn has just descended upon the city and within a few hours, he will be missing for 24 hours. Rolling his head from side to side, he tries to work the stiffness that has settled into his neck. Trying to shift in the chair, he feels a movement in the pocket of his jeans. Confused, he presses his hand against the object. Closing his eyes he tries to think back to the prior days events, trying to recall what he could have put in his pocket.

A slow smile spreads across his face, as he realizes the object is his cell phone! He pulls against the duct tape around his wrists, giving extra movement to his hands. Stretching his leg out as far as he can and leaning back against the chair, he maneuvers the phone out of his pocket. Pressing the power button, he watches as the familiar cell phone carrier logo lights up the screen. He quickly moves through the menus and changes the phone status to silent mode. Whispering 'I'm here Kate' he manages to get the phone back into his pocket as he hears the locks on the door opening.

* * *

She can't breath. She feels Esposito pushing her down into a nearby chair. Martha placing a glass of water in her hands, telling her to drink it. Her hands shake as she places the glass back down on the table. Carla Dante, the God damn mob! The confidence she felt a few moments earlier has now turned into fear. She knows the possibilities of how this can all play out. How is she going to explain this to Alexis and Martha? How is she going to find him and more importantly, bring him home safely.

She can feel all eyes on her and slowly moves out of the chair. Ryan takes a step forward, but she waves him off. She has to think about her next step. Wrapping her arms around herself, she begins to pace the dinning room. Kate knows that she is going to need the help of the FBI and Will to get Castle home.

Looking over at Will, "Okay. We need to find out how she was able to escape and why Castle was her target."

Turning to Esposito, "I need the file from the Dr. Joshua Leeds case and I needed it 5 minutes ago."

"You got it boss," he said already dialing the precinct as he moves away.

Turning her attention back to Will, she demands "Who was the federal attorney on that case? Was it Candace Robertson? Will, I need you to call her. I need to talk with her"

"I can't speak with her Kate" he answers quietly.

Clearly annoyed she says, "Can't or won't. Come on Will. This is the _only _decent lead we have to find Castle. If I have to go over your head, I will do it. You know I will get what I want if I push hard enough."

"Kate," Will says "Sit down. Please."

Martha and Ryan step closer to Kate as she pulls a chair out and sits down. Looking up she says, "Will?"

"The reason I was called away earlier was a kidnapping of a federal attorney." Will says while Kate closes her eyes to collect her thoughts. He continues, "It was Candace Robertson."

* * *

He watches them behind slit lids as they enter the room. The smaller of the two captors carrying a paper bag and two water bottles. The larger man carrying two chairs and a plastic bag. Setting the chairs up facing Castle and the woman, he opens the plastic bag and pulls out the duct tape. Ripping off two strips he walks over to the woman and placing one over her mouth. He turns his attention back to Castle and places one on his mouth as well.

He moves back to the smaller captive and says "Okay. Let's go."

"Did you check them? I don't want them waking up just yet."

"They won't. I gave them enough to keep them both knocked out for a while. At least until we pick up Agent Sorenson and Detective Beckett."

She nods and as she steps out of the shadow Castle can see the face of the smaller captive. He recognizes the woman instantly not being able to hold back the gasp that escapes through the duct tape.

"Check him" Carla hisses at the larger man.

He walks back over to Castle and punches him in the stomach. Castle let's out a groan and the man hits him a second time in the face. Before he passes out Castle's last thought is now he won't be able to warn Kate.


	22. Chapter 22

At the moment you could hear a pin drop in Castle's dining room. The energy in the loft had changed and Ryan could feel the storm brewing. He could feel it radiating off of Beckett's body as she sat in the chair. He knew, from past experience, that when she released it, you wanted to be anywhere but near her. He also knew this storm was going to be different, because this one involved Castle. Ryan knew that Will Sorenson was going to wish he was anywhere but here in less thirty seconds.

Martha looks over at Ryan, their gaze meeting and with a slight shake of his head, he steps away from Beckett slowly and moves next to Martha. She turns her attention back to Kate and watches as Kate slowly rises from the chair. Her head down, she slowly spreads her fingers out, almost like a fan, against the dining room table. It was something dangling from a necklace around Kate's neck that caught Martha's eye; her mother's ring. Of course, she knew the meaning behind the watch on her wrist and the ring around her neck. Richard had told her the story behind them, the same day he told her about the information Dr. Death had discovered about her mother's murder.

She watches Kate as she slowly reaches up and gently wraps her fingers around the ring. As Kate closes her eyes, the energy level of the storm Martha and Ryan both felt previously, subsides slightly. Kate stood back and slowly releases the ring and chain, letting it fall against her shirt.

She opens her eyes, looks directly at Will and in a controlled voice states, "You arrogant son of a bitch. You knew when you left here last night what happened. You knew and you said nothing."

"I didn't know their was a connection when I left here last night." He states hoping to make her understand, "I only found out when I arrived at the scene. We went through cases that several agents and myself worked with her and we only went as far back as six months."

He starts to step around the table, but Kate stops him with her raised hand. "Don't even think about coming near me right now." She steps away from the table, moving past the couch in the living room and walks over to the stairs. Looking up, her hand resting on the banister, she hopes that Alexis is still sleeping and hasn't overheard them downstairs.

Martha, still standing next to Ryan, can sense there is something that Kate is holding back. She knew by the way Kate deliberately avoided her gaze and the way that she moved towards the stairs, looking up. Martha is sure she is listening for any movement by Alexis. She turns to Ryan and notices he's watching Kate too. He looks at Martha before turning away, in search of his partner.

Martha also moves away from the table and stops next to Kate. "I'm going up to check on Alexis and let you do what you need to do." Moving around Kate and starts making her way up the stairs. She stops when she feels Kate's hand on her arm "Martha ... " Martha can see the uncertainty in Kate's eyes and places her hand on top of Kate's. "Darling, I can tell this news is not good and later, when you bring Richard home, you can tell me about it. I'm going to help you now by going to check on Alexis and keeping her upstairs. I'll send Lanie down to you." She squeezes Kate's hand one last time and makes her way up the stairs.

Kate watches as Martha makes her way up the stairs and is over come with emotion. With her eyes filling with tears, she turns, making her way into Caste's office and walks over to the alcove, sitting down in one of the chairs. For the second time that morning, she let her emotions take over and the tears fall slowly down her face. She turns her head and looks over at the photos lining the cabinet. Her attention being drawn to a picture of Castle and Alexis that appears to be recent and reaches for it, looking at the face smiling back at her. 'I need to find you and bring you home. Alexis and Martha need you and God help me, I need you too. Where are you Rick?'. She pulls the photo against her chest and leans back into the chair.

Lanie makes her way down the stairs in time to see Will move toward Castle's study. "I wouldn't do that if I were you." The sound of her voice stopping him in his tracks. "I've heard that you have already done enough and that my girl has warned you not to come near her."

He turns to Lanie and says, "I gave her some space and I'm going to go talk with her. Besides, once I make her understand, all will be forgiven." He starts again to move toward the study, but Lanie steps in front of him.

"You must be completely stupid or have a death wish if you honestly think she is going to forgive you. This isn't like the time her and I went to Florida for a long weekend and you forgot to water her plant. This time, Will, you won't be forgiven." She looks up at him, her hands on her hips. At that moment, Esposito and Ryan walk in and stand behind Lanie with there arms crossed.

Knowing that Lanie won't step aside, or the two detectives standing behind her, he wisely steps back. "Okay. I'll see if the agents working the case have anything." He turns and walks back over to his laptop on the dining room table.

Lanie turns to Eposito and Ryan, "Keep him away from Kate."

Esposito nods, "I heard. Ryan filled me in on what happened last night and Beckett's reaction to it. You go talk to her and we'll take care of things out here."

Lanie nods her thanks and makes her way into Castle's study. She looks over and finds Kate curled up in a chair in the alcove. As she steps closer, she notices the framed photo clutched to her chest. Kate looks at Lanie, wiping the tears from her face and puts the photo back on the cabinet. Lanie looks at the photo not really surprised it is a picture of Castle and sits down in the other chair next to her.

"Kate, you can't sit in here and beat yourself up. This isn't your fault. You'll find him and he knows it. Alexis and Martha know it too." Leaning forward she reaches out and squeezes Kate's hand.

"Did Martha tell you what he did? Do you know he knew last night and he never called? It's the same woman who killed Dr. Leeds, the plastic surgeon. She was with the mob, Lanie. What do you think his chances are now? How am I going to explain this to Alexis? Do you know just yesterday, we sat in that chair over there together and she thanked me for saving her father. How is she going to feel now, Lanie." Kate gets up and stands in front of the windows.

Lanie gets up from the chair and moves next to Kate. Putting her arm around her she says, "This is _not_ your fault Kate and if Castle was here he would tell you the same thing. Both Alexis and Martha know how hard you and the boys are working and they trust you."

Kate looks over at her friend and whispers, "I can't lose him too. I won't survive it this time, Lanie."

"I know."

Hearing Beckett's name, they both turn around to see Ryan standing a few feet from them. "You are going to want to see this."

"What is it Ryan." Beckett says as she approaches him.

"I had started the GPS software yesterday after the laptops were set up. With everything that was going on earlier, I never saw the tracking indicator pop up until just now."

Lanie moves next to Kate. Beckett raises her eyebrow, "What did you see?"

"We got him Beckett. We got a hit on Castle's cell phone. We found him."


	23. Chapter 23

Beckett was sitting in front of the laptop, just watching the icon with Castle's cell signal flashing at her on the screen. She had to see it for herself, not that she didn't believe Ryan or anything but she just had to see it. A small smile spreads across her face as she watches the flashing icon and all she could think about was that he would be home soon.

She didn't have to look up to see that Sorenson had made his way over to the couch to see what they were all looking at on the laptop. She could feel her team close in around her as he approached, without any of them physically moving from there places.

Looking up at Esposito standing next to her she tells him "We need to get this location locked in and get the SWAT team in position."

"It would be better to use the FBI team than the NYPD team."

The others all look at Will, but Kate ignores him and continues, "Ryan, can you call the Captain and let him know what is going on? Let him know I want the best men on the team. We'll let them know where the location is shortly."

"Kate ... this is not a good idea." Will states as he moves around the couch to face her. As their eyes lock he sees in them something that has never been directed at him until this moment; anger.

Taking a deep breath and not taking her eyes off of him, she slowly stands up, "I'm not interested in what you think, Will. I'll take my chances with the NYPD over _your_ FBI any day. If the FBI had done there job, Castle would have been safe and we wouldn't be here right now. You worry about Candace Roberson and I'll worry about Castle."

"Well, at least we got him and hopefully, Candace too."

Kate's arches her eyebrow and lets out a tense laugh, "We Will, _we_ didn't do anything to find him. The two best leads that I've received have all been because of Castle. The only reason I'll be able to bring him home is because of him. I'm going to make damned sure my team is there to make sure that happens."

"Unfortunately, because there is a federal agent involved you and the NYPD don't have any authority on this case now. You and your boys will have to step back and watch the professionals work."

It was the shake of Esposito's head and the sound of Ryan releasing his breath that he was holding that Will realized he had over played his hand with Kate. Before he knew what hit him, he found himself sitting in the chair behind him and Kate standing in front of him, her hands grabbing the front of his shirt.

"You honestly think I'm going to sit back and watch you and the FBI screw this up too? If you want to coordinate with me and my team, fine but I'm not going to sit back and watch from the sidelines. If you remember anything about me, you know that would never happen and it's especially not going to happen now." She shoves against him one last time before releasing him and steps back, silently daring him to challenge her.

Will watches as the boys and Lanie all take a few steps forward showing support for her and he guesses for Castle too. It was at this moment that Will realizes he had lost any chance to get Kate back.

He hadn't deliberately held back the information about Candace's abduction. He just completely missed the connection between the two cases. Kate had seen the connection immediately proving once again that despite all that was going on, she was on top of her game.

Castle had won. He not only hooked her but had reeled her in too. Watching Kate while still sitting in the chair, he made the only decision he could in order to make up for his earlier error. He was going to help her bring him home safely.

"Okay Kate, we'll do this your way. However you and your team want to handle this to get him out safely is fine by me. We'll work together to get them both out safely."

She narrowed her eyes at him not sure she was hearing him correctly but stepped back as he moved out of the chair that she had "helped" him into before.

Arching her eyebrow up a little higher, she asks "What kind of game are you playing with me Will?"

"No game Kate. He has a child and a mother upstairs that want him home. He's important to you and to your team. Candace is important to a lot of people at the Justice Department and the FBI and there's no reason we can't work together."

She continues to look at him, uncertain if she can really trust him or not but she's smart enough to know they had a better chance with both agencies working together. She also knew that in the end Will would let her take the lead. Still looking at him Kate nods her head silently, agreeing to this new arrangement.

"Good. I only have one concern. I realize we have a hit on his cell phone but we have to remain cautious about the condition we find him and Candace." Looking at Kate, Will continues, "You were right when you said the only reason we had any leads was because of Castle himself. I just don't want any of us to get our hopes up and then possibly come up empty handed. Or worse."

"I know" she whispers as she turns and walks back to sit down in front of the open laptop. She had thought about what Will was trying not to say out loud. As she looks at that icon blinking back at her, she knows in her heart that it was Castle whom had found a way to turn on his cell. He was still alive and waiting for her to find him.

She was sure the others were thinking the same thing but it was Ryan that spoke up, "I started running the GPS software within minutes of it being set up. There were no hits on his number until a few minutes ago. Don't ask me how, but I know that it was Castle who turned his phone on to help you."

"Kate ..." looking up she sees Alexis and Martha standing behind Will. "Have you found my dad?"

Before she can get up from the couch, Alexis moves past Will and sits down next to Kate. She watches as Alexis looks down at the screen displaying the flashing icon and her dad's cell phone number. As Kate watches a huge smile spread across Alexis' face and Kate can't help but smile herself.

Alexis looks to Martha before turning her attention back to Kate. Taking her hand Alexis says, "Dad was right."

"About what, sweetie."

"You are extraordinary." she whispers while leaning her head against Kate's shoulder.

Placing a kiss on top of Alexis' head she looks over at Martha. She knows that she's not hiding anything from Martha. Even past her smile she can tell that Martha knows she still worried. This isn't over just yet. She still has to bring him home.


	24. Chapter 24

The drive down to the Brooklyn Naval Yard seemed to take longer than the 30 minutes indicated by her watch. She parked her vehicle between the captain's and the SWAT team vehicles. The FBI vehicles were also scattered about and their SWAT team was conferring with Will as she got out of her vehicle. She opens the trunk and reaches for her vest as she shifts her gaze to his vest that was still in the vehicle. She runs her fingers along 'Writer' and takes a deep breath. Stepping back she puts on her vest, loads an extra clip with bullets and checks her gun. Closing the trunk and bringing her cell up to her ear, Kate says "Hey Lanie."

"Hey girl. I take it you are there?"

"Yeah. How is she?"

Kate is sure Lanie knows that she is referring to Alexis. When the boys started making calls to the SWAT team and to the captain, she told Alexis that she and the boys would be leaving shortly. Alexis wanted to be here when they found her father.

"_You can't sweetie. We can't be sure of what the situation may be and I'm not going to take that risk where you are concerned. I made a promise to your father a long time ago and I intend to keep it. I need you and your grandmother to stay here with Lanie."_

"_Please Kate. I want to be there when you find my dad.. I'll stay in the car."_

_Kate had actually laughed when Alexis said she would stay in the car. "What is it with you Castle's? Your father tells me that everyday and everyday he gets out of the car." Taking Alexis' hand she continues, "I need to focus on finding your dad and getting him out safely. I can't do that if I'm worried about you. The minute we get him out of there I'll call you and let you know that he's okay. Deal?"_

_Nodding her head she squeezed Kate's hand. "Deal. I know that you'll do everything you can to make sure that my dad is safe." She blinks as tears start to fill her eyes, "I __need you to come back safely too." _

"She's okay. She's in Castle's study and sitting in the same chair I found you in earlier."

"Okay." Hesitating slightly "Lanie, take care of my girl."

"You know I will. Kate, you be careful. There are people here just as worried about you as they are Castle."

"I know that Lanie and I will." Watching as the boys walk toward her she says, "I have to go. I'll call when we find him and everyone is safe."

"You guys ready?"

They both nod and turn with her when the captain calls out her name.

The three watch as the captain approaches and he smiles at the shocked look on their faces. Wearing a NYPD bullet proof vest with his side arm locked and loaded, he joins not as just their captain but one of the tight knit team.

"Sorenson and his team are ready." he announces as he stops in front of them.

All three detectives nod and the boys walk off to meet up with the other group. Kate looks over at the captain and he says, "He's part of your team and he's my friend. I figure an extra pair of eyes and a gun would be helpful." He follows the boys before she can respond.

Shaking her head, she follows the captain and stops in front of them. "Thank you. No matter what happens, we will not give up till we get Castle out alive."

She turns to join Will now standing in front of the teams ready to take charge.

"Detective Beckett and her team will take the lead while those on my team will flank them. We have two teams on the other side of this building doing an infrared sweep. We'll know exactly where Castle and Roberson are located and if they are alone or not. Now I don't have to remind anyone we are moving with extreme caution. Be aware that both Castle and Roberson are probably injured in some way and may not be able to assist in the takedown." Will nods to Kate and continues "Castle did his part by leading us here so lets get him and Roberson home." Just then they hear the squawk from the radio.

"We have located four heat sources on the top floor of building twelve in the northwest corner. How do you want us to proceed?" Will watches Kate as relief floods her face, closes her eyes and gives a slight nod.

"Keep track of any movement of the heat sources. We are posted on the other side of the building and the teams will be moving in shortly."

"Roger."

Kate opens her eyes and looks at Will. He can see that she is still concerned for his safety but he also sees the depth of her feelings for Castle. A part of Will would like the chance to start over with Kate but he knows that he's not the man she wants anymore. The man she wants is a building away and he's going to make sure that they get both Castle and Roberson out alive and unharmed. He owes her that much.

"You ready Kate?"

With a nod of her head she moves forward as the boys, Captain Montgomery and the NYPD SWAT team follow behind their leader. Will and the FBI SWAT team follow a few paces behind and all meet up with the surveillance team on the other side of the building.

"We've disabled a white van we located on the north side of the building. We ran the plate number and it's the same van that was reported stolen two days ago. There is blood and other evidence but none of it was processed. It was more important to disable the vehicle at the moment."

Will nods to the agent, "Okay. They won't be able to get too far if they do manage to get past us. We know that two are armed and the other two are Roberson and Castle. Carla Dante will have no problem taking out either or both of them, so we are going to move nice and easy on this one." He watches as the members of the two teams nod in agreement. He's about to continue when he's interrupted by the surveillance agent.

"Sorenson, we have movement from one of them now. It appears the person is heading down the northeast corner stairwell. The only exit will be the outside door near the van."

Before he can respond, Kate and the boys draw their weapons and move quickly into position. The man opens the door, steps out and with lightening speed Kate and the boys have him on the ground and hand cuffed before he was able to make a sound.

Will watches as the boys haul the man up and walk along side of him giving him over to SWAT team members waiting to secure him. Following slightly behind the team, Will sees a slight smile cross her lips and then quickly disappear.

"One down, one more to go." Kate states as she stops in front of Will. "Let's go. I want to surprise her now that we have the upper hand."

She steps around him not waiting to see if her team was with her. She knew they would be.

They move through the building and to the set of stairs closest to where the three thermal images were located. With their guns drawn, Will watches as Kate and the boys quickly ascend the set of stairs and securing the next level and signal for the rest to follow. They continue to work in this pattern until they reach the top floor.

Will moves quietly over to Kate, "Okay. The room should be down the hall and to the left. If her accomplice just went out to the van, the door may have been left unlocked. We are going to have to move quickly if we want to surprise her."

Resisting the temptation to roll her eyes at Will's condescending statement, she turns to face the wall and slowly peaks around the corner of the door frame. She see the only door on the left, about 10 feet down on the left with four brand new locks. She closes her eyes as she lets out a breath and turns to look at Will with quiet determination.

"The door is open."

Nodding he answers, "Lets find out her location," as he takes a few steps away and makes a call to the team outside.

She watches as Ryan, Esposito and the Captain check their weapons and tighten the velcro on their vests. They all look at her with the same resolved etched on their faces signaling that they are ready.

Will moves back next to her and whispers, "Two are located next to each other and not moving. She's on the other side of the room, to the left, and it appears that she's pacing." She nods as her team moves in close.

"Esposito and Ryan, focus on taking her down. Will, the Captain and I will cover Castle and Roberson. Esposito, take Russell and Peters with you." Pulling her weapon from her back and releasing the safety she says, "Let's move. We go on my signal."

Ryan signals for Russell and Peters to join them as they move slowly down the hall. It takes but a moment to get in position by the door while Kate moves to the other side of the door; Will and the captain moving in behind her.

Taking one final moment to steal herself for what's to come, she looks over at Esposito and nods her head.

She watches as the four of them move forward, slowly pushing the door open and hears him yell out, "NYPD down on the ground now."


	25. Chapter 25

Beckett moves quickly into the room as soon as Esposito yelled to them that it was all clear. She sees Carla Dante on the ground, already hand cuffed, watching as Russell and Peters reach down and pull her up by her arms. They stop when they reach Beckett and Sorenson.

"Carla Dante, you are under arrest for a multitude of charges and I am going to make sure you don't get the chance to hurt anyone else. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to speak to an attorney. If you can't afford an attorney, one will be appointed to you. Do you understand these right as they have been read to you?" Will says to her.

A slight smile graces his face as he continues "You are going away for a very, very long time. The kidnapping of a federal agent is just the beginning of the long list of charges that will be brought against you."

She laughs in response and says, "The family will make certain that the best lawyer is obtained for me. If I serve anytime it won't be for very long at all."

Folding his arms over his chest he continues, "I wouldn't be so certain of that if I were you. Not only did you kidnap a federal agent, but you also kidnapped a world famous author. My sources tell me your 'family' knew nothing of your escape, much less what you planned on your own and a member of the 'family' is willing to testify to that in court."

The smirk that she had on her face slowly fades as she looks between Sorenson and Beckett. Narrowing her eyes she says to Beckett, "I should have killed him when I had the chance." Beckett lunges for Dante, but is stopped when she feels Will's hands on her arms holding her back.

"Get her out of here," Montgomery commands as Russell and Peters escort her out the door.

Will releases his grip on Beckett as she turns to search for Castle. Not more than ten feet away, head bowed down and duct taped to a chair, sits _her _Castle. As she moves quickly over to him, she can hear Montgomery calling for the paramedics that had been waiting downstairs.

"Castle," she whispers, as she presses two fingers to his neck to feel for his pulse. She closes her eyes as she feels the strong beat of it underneath her fingers. She cups his chin with her hand and gently tilts his head back. She lets out her breath as she looks down at his bruised and swollen face. She can feel a slight sting behind her eyes and fights against the tears threatening to form.

She continues to check the rest of his body for any possible broken bones, as Ryan works on cutting the duct tape. Satisfied that there only appears to be a few cuts and bruises, she looks back up at his face. Placing her hand against his cheek she whispers "Castle...come on wake up for me," leaning her forehead against his and closing her eyes.

"Beckett" the captain says next to her, "Paramedics are here to look him over and transport him." She steps back while nodding her head and moves next to the captain so that they can work on him.

"He's going to be fine, Beckett." the captain says as they both watch the paramedics settle Castle onto the stretcher. "Why don't you go with him to the hospital. Esposito and Ryan can finish up here." Not taking her eyes off of Castle she nods her head.

"Detective," turning her gaze to the paramedic "It appears that Mr. Castle has no broken bones, but the hospital will do a more thorough check. Aside from some cuts and bruises, his vital signs are all good. If you are ready, we can load him into the ambulance and get him over to New York Downtown Hospital."

She moves closer to the stretcher and looks down at him. Her throat tightens as she sees the oxygen mask in place and a few temporary bandages. She moves her hand to clasp his and bends down to whisper in his ear, "Rick ... please open your eyes for me?" Kissing his cheek as she draws back to look down at his face.

His eyes start to flutter open and he slowly looks at her. She smiles and the tears that she had been holding back start to fill her eyes. She sees the panic in his eyes, as he shakes his head and moves his hand up to remove the oxygen mask. She stops his hand, "No leave it on. I'm okay just so happy that you are alive. You're going to be okay but the paramedics are going to transport you to the hospital and have you checked by a doctor. I'll call Alexis and Martha on our way there." He squeezes her hand and takes a deep breath before closing his eyes again. "Rick ... Castle!" She looks at the paramedic that had addressed her a few moments ago.

"It's okay Detective. He passed out again, but it's very encouraging that he woke up. But, we need to get going so that he can be checked out more thoroughly." She releases his hand as she watches as they slowly move him out of the room.

"Beckett," she turns her attention back to the captain. "Go. We'll be fine here. These two have it covered and Castle needs you more than they do. I'll call to have a car pick up Alexis, Martha and Dr. Parish." She looks over at Esposito and Ryan.

"The captain is right, we got this. We'll meet you at the hospital as soon as we are done here. Don't worry about your car, we'll make sure it gets to you." Esposito says while Ryan nods in agreement.

Smiling at the boys she turns back to the captain, "Thank you sir. I'll call you when I get an update on his condition." Looking over at the boys one last time, she makes her way out the door and quickly to the ambulance just as they load Castle.

Will is waiting for her by the ambulance door. "They say he's going to be okay. I'm glad we found him in time. Keep me posted on his condition."

She nods her head and says, "How is Roberson?"

Looking over at the second ambulance as it pulls away, "She has a few bruises but she'll be okay. I'm sure it's going to be hard for the chief at the Justice Department to keep her off Dante's case."

"Detective. We have to get going." the paramedic says stepping down from the back of the ambulance.

She moves to the back door and pulls herself up inside the ambulance turning when she hears Will call her name.

"He's a very lucky man."

She smiles at him as the paramedic shuts both the doors and moves to the driver's side. Will watches as the ambulance pulls away and then turns making his way back into the building.

She moves closer to Castle as the other paramedic works on him, making notes on a chart. Pulling out her phone she makes the call to Lanie.

"Tell me he's okay?"

"He's got some bruises and a few cuts, no broken bones that we can tell yet. He's alive, that's all that I care about right now. Where's Alexis and Martha?"

"Alexis is right here."

"Kate ... how's my dad?"

"I'm not going to lie to you. He's got a few bruises and cuts, but he did wake up briefly. His vital signs are good otherwise and we are on our way to get him checked out. Tell your grandmother and Lanie that the captain is sending a car over to pick the three of you up to bring you to the hospital."

"Can I talk to him?" she whispers.

"He's unconscious right now, sweetie."

"Okay. Will you kiss him for me and tell him that I love him."

"You know I will. I'll see you in a little while."

"Kate?" it's barely a whisper.

"Yeah." her throat tightens as she waits.

"Thank you Kate, for saving my dad and for saving us."

Closing her eyes to hold back her tears, "I'll see you in a little while, sweetie." ending the call.

Looking at Castle she sees his eyes are open and he's watching her. She reaches for his hand as she leans forward and places a kiss against his cheek. "From your daughter and she says that she loves you."

He smiles at her through the mask and squeezes her hand, just as they pull into the Emergency bay at New York Downtown Hospital. The paramedics open the back doors and Beckett steps down so they can get Castle out. She follows them inside and watches as they move him into ER #3 but doesn't see the nurse approaching.

"Detective Beckett?" she asks waiting for Beckett to look at her.

"Yes."

"Why don't you wait in the family waiting area just down the hall. I'll send the doctor over once he's had a chance to check Mr. Castle and make his assessment."

Nodding her head and looking towards ER #3 one last time she moves down the hall and locates the family waiting area. She finds the area empty and removes her vest before sitting down in one of the chairs.

Leaning forward she places her head in her hands, fighting the new round of tears that threaten to fall. She keeps reminding herself that they arrived in time and that he's okay; that everything was going to be okay.

"Kate!" looking up she sees Alexis running towards her, barely getting out of the chair as the teen throws herself into Kate's arms. Martha and Lanie following just a few steps behind.

"Kate. Have you talked to the doctor? How is Richard doing?"

"I haven't talked to his doctor yet. The ER nurse said she would send his doctor back here once they had a chance to check him. He had woken up again just as we arrived at the hospital."

Before Martha can ask another question, a tall man in ER scrubs walks in and says, "Detective Beckett?"

"Yes ...?" as Alexis turns to look at the doctor standing before them.

"I have some news on Mr. Castle's condition."


	26. Chapter 26

The doctor told them that some additional tests were being run on Castle as a precaution. His vital signs were steadily improving but he was still in and out of consciousness. Considering it was still unknown what exactly was injected into his system, this was not unusual. Once the results of the lab work was back, they could be more proactive with treatment.

"All in all, he is doing well but we are still going to keep him for a day or two. Again, it's just a precaution. It's going to be another hour before the additional testing is complete, but as soon as he's settled into a room, I'll send a nurse to come get all of you."

Kate breathed an inward sigh of relief at the news and could feel the familiar sting of tears forming in her eyes. She feels Alexis move next to her and slips her hand into Kate's. She hears her softly murmur "Dad's going to make it because you found him in time."

Looking at Alexis she answered, "I had help, a lot of help and your dad played a big part in that too."

Kate couldn't help but chuckle as she rolled her eyes and responds "Yes, but don't tell him that Kate. He'll never let you live it down and if you think he's bad now, you haven't seen him at his worst."

Reassured that her dad was back in safe hands, Kate felt Alexis lean her head on her shoulder. It was a small gesture but needed for both of them.

Just then Esposito and Ryan showed up and Kate filled them in on Castle prognosis. Ryan went to phone the captain and Jenny, while Esposito walked with Lanie and Alexis to the cafeteria to find something to eat. Leaving Martha and Kate in the waiting area.

Martha looked over at Kate, sipping her coffee from the cup that Esposito brought to her when the boys had arrived. "You know when you left the loft this morning, Alexis said she wasn't worried about her dad anymore. She said you would do anything to bring him home safely. Richard is very lucky to have you Kate. We are all lucky to have you as part of our family."

Reaching over to grasp Kate's hand, "Thank you for taking care of us and more importantly, thank you for finding my boy and bringing him home."

She squeezed her hand in an effort to keep her composure, "Martha you don't need to thank me. I didn't do anything more than what he would have done if it was me." As she turned her face to Martha's gaze and sensed that Martha was holding something back. Kate needed to know what exactly was really on her mind. "Martha, is something wrong?"

"Yes, there is Kate, and given what we've just been through, I hope that you will give me a honest answer."

Nodding her head, "Sure. What's the question?" as she took a sip of the her coffee.

"How long have you been in love with my son?"

Kate choked on her coffee as she felt the heat on her neck and across her face. Taken back by the bluntness of the question, she takes a napkin to wipe at a spot on her jeans and collect her thoughts. Kate knew Martha could see right through her so she might as well be honest with her and herself.

Taking a deep breath she looked at Martha and whispers, "I really don't know ... it just short of happened."

"Darling, have you told him how you feel?" already knowing the answer to the question.

"No. I was going to tell him but in the end I didn't and then he left with Gina. I still thought they were together until yesterday and Castle probably still thinks I'm with Tom. I broke things off with him before Castle left for the Hamptons, but I never had the chance to tell him."

Martha watched as Kate fiddled with her coffee cup, "It seems to me that you were both given a second chance. I can now assume that was the reason for Richard's return to the city, he was hoping for a second chance. Life doesn't give you a lot of those opportunities, but you know that better than anyone. It's giving you one now Kate; take it."

Before she can answer Ryan returned from his calls with Alexis, Lanie and Esposito a few steps behind him. The small group settles in with some drinks and snacks to keep them occupied while waiting to see Castle.

Kate's mind, however, was not on what was going on with the group but what was said between herself and Martha. Needing to get away, she excused herself and walked into the ladies room.

Lanie looked over at Alexis talking with the boys and turns back to Martha and whispers, "What's wrong with Kate?"

"I'm guessing she's thinking about love and second chances and hopefully, Richard is doing the same thing."

_

He was finally settled into a private room. After they had finished with the tests, bandaged up the cuts that needed it and gave him a fresh hospital gown in lieu of his clothes, he laid in the bed. A nurse had just finished checking his IV bag and told him that he missed lunch but she would find the dinner menu for him.

"Your family and friends should be on there way up shortly. I'm sure they are anxious to see you as much as you are to see them." Tucking in the blankets around him she continued, "You rest a little and I'll go check to see where they are located." She's gone before he can thank her.

Settling back against the pillows to wait his mind starts to wonder. He can't wait to see Alexis and his mother and he can't wait to see Kate again. He was so happy to see her when he woke up earlier and she was telling him that he was okay. Just then the door bursts open.

"Dad ...!" as Alexis runs to him. He reached for her and hugs her close. She pulls back to look at him just as his mother walks up to the other side of the bed.

"Richard ... you gave us all quite a scare." as she leaned down to kiss his cheek and whispers, "What did they do to my boy?" Kissing his cheek again before stepping back.

"I'll be fine Mother. I'm just more ruggedly handsome then I was before."

Shaking her head she looked over at Alexis, "He's back darling. He'll milk this for three months if not longer." Sitting in the chair next to his bed.

Alexis sits back against the bed next to Castle and says, "It's okay Gram. I'm so glad that dad is alive. Besides, if he gets out of hand, Kate will set him straight."

As if on cue the door to the room opens again and Lanie, Ryan and Esposito come walking into the room. While the boys immediately told Castle how brilliant he was for the recording on the laptop and for turning on the GPS tracking on his cell phone, Lanie was checking his bandages and the bruises that were visible to her.

He looked at her as she's checking the IV line on his arm, "Where's Kate?"

"She on the phone with Sorenson." she replied as she looks at him.

"Oh. Sorenson was involved in this too?" he asks. 'Great,' he thinks, 'Not only do I have Demming to deal with, now I have to deal with square-jawed too.'

As if knowing what he was thinking Lanie poked at his arm to get his attention. Looking at her she says, "Listen to me Castle and listen good. You have _nothing _to worry about. _Nothing._ Do you understand what I'm saying to you?"

Nodding slowly at her she continued, "Good. Then _don't _blow it this time around. Because if you do, I'm gonna have to hurt you and I know how to hurt people."

"Take it from me bro, she's not joking." Esposito said from the other side of the room rubbing his arm unconsciously.

"Yeah Dad. Don't blow it." He looked at Alexis sitting next to him. She smiles at him and continues, "I may be a teenager but I'm not blind. I love Kate and she's good for you."

Looking around the room he sees all of them nodding to him, "Well, glad to know that each of have an opinion on this matter. The real question is can I convince her."

"Oh Richard," Martha says with a sigh, "How is it you know so little about women?"

Again, as if on cue, the door opens and the subject of their discussion walks into the room. Noticing how quiet everyone is she looked around and settles her gaze on Castle. "What did you do now?"

Making the quick decision that her son and Kate need a big push towards a conversation that is long over due, Martha is the first one to speak up, "He didn't do anything darling. Alexis and I were just deciding to go back to the loft for a little while. Give Richard a chance to rest. Since we have all that food at the loft, I suggested that the boys and Lanie join us for lunch there."

"I want to check in at the ME office anyway," Lanie added, realising what Martha is doing, she continues "and a nice hot lunch and a quick shower before my shift would be great. Besides, I have to go back to the loft to get my bag."

"Ryan and I need to get all the equipment ready for Henry to pick up. Plus, the captain called Ryan and he wants us to wait for the next officer to arrive at the loft. Some hot food would be great and Ryan and I have our bags there too."

Looking at Ryan and narrowing her eyes she says, "I just got off the phone with the captain, he never said anything to me about you two waiting for the officer."

"He knew that Esposito and I have it covered and probably felt it was something you didn't need to be concerned about."

"Come on Alexis," Martha cuts in before Kate can say anything, "Richard, we'll be back later this evening to see you." As she leaned down to kiss his cheek, she asked "Anything you need from the loft?"

"My sweats and some t-shirts would be great. I'm not a big fan of these hospital gowns." She nods her head and squeezes his hand as she walks away from the bed.

"Bro, we'll catch up with you later." Esposito said as he starts to make his way over to the door.

"We'll make sure everything is safe at the loft." Ryan added as he walks past Esposito and holds the door open.

Lanie walks back over to check his IV line and looks at him, flicking his ear lope she says, "Remember what I said to you a few minutes ago." He nods as she turns and walks over to Kate. "You need anything from the loft, you call me. I'll have one of the boys run it over to you."

"Thanks Lanie. For everything," hugging her friend close to her.

"Tell him," she whispers to Kate before moving away and towards the open door walking out with the boys, the door closing behind them.

Kate turns away from the door just as Martha stops in front of her, "Darling, I can't thank you enough for what you did for us. Not only for bringing Richard safely home, but for all that you did of us, especially Alexis. I won't ever forget it. I said it yesterday and I'll say it again, you're a good woman Kate Beckett."

"Thank you Martha," she whispered as the older woman hugs her close.

Before releasing Kate she ever so softly encouraged her, "Talk to him Kate." Kissing her cheek as she steps back and looks over at her son. Smiling, she looks at Alexis she says, "Say goodbye to your father, Alexis. We'll be back later tonight to check on you and I'll bring your clothes that you asked for."

Looking at her dad she kissed his cheek and says, "You get some rest. Gram and I will be back later to see you." Hugging him again she continued, "I'm so very happy that you are alive dad."

Holding her a little bit longer he says, "Me too pumpkin; me too." Kissing her on the forehead as he looked over at his mother and Kate.

Alexis kisses him one last time and then walked over to Kate. "Are you going to stay with us at the loft again tonight? You can sleep in dad's room like you did last night, it's better than the guestroom."

"Yes Alexis. I'm going to stay at the loft until you dad is released." She doesn't need to look at Castle to see that he's heard the whole exchange and that he has a smirk on his face and his eyebrow is raised. "Wipe that look off your face, Castle." Causing Alexis to roll her eyes before turning to look at her father.

"Dad!" Shaking her head at him and turning back around she hugs Kate and whispered, "I knew you would bring dad home safely." Feeling Kate pull Alexis closer to her she continues, "I love you Kate."

"I love you too Alexis," she feels the burn of tears starting to form in her eyes and kisses the teen on her cheek. Pulling back to place her hand on Alexis' cheek, "I'll see you later okay."

Nodding the teen looks back at Castle. "Dad ... we'll be back to see you later."

Kate watched as both Alexis and Martha reach the door and she sees Esposito waiting for them as they head down the hall.

She takes a deep breath before turning her attention back to Castle. She sees the tears in his eyes as he says to her, "You took care of her; of both of them."

Moving slowly towards the bed, she stops only when she's next to him. Reaching out she brushed a lock of his hair back and touches his cheek. "I promised I would along time ago."

Reaching for her hand, he kissed the inside of it and whispers, "We need to talk." 


End file.
